By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – There's nothing like getting that first win of the season. Building on the momentum the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team created during Friday's contest against Missouri, the Golden Eagles led from the start and never looked back, taking a 65-59 victory over Stetson on Saturday to close out their play in the Daytona Beach Classic.
Tech (1-4) got double-digit scoring production from four players as Anna Walker led the way with 16 points, while Maaliya Owens had 12, Reagan Hurst 11 and Reghan Grimes 10. Everything that worked in the Golden Eagles' one-point loss Friday to Southeastern Conference foe Missouri seemed to click again.
A strong shooting percentage? Check. The Golden Eagles ended the night shooting 47.8 percent from the field, including 8-for-17 from 3-point range and 13-of-19 from the free-throw line.
Moving the ball? Check. Tech dished the ball around expertly, collecting 13 assists to Stetson's five, led by four from Hurst.
Great defensive effort? Check. The Golden Eagles were able to force 18 turnovers and block five shots. Yaubryon Chambers had three of those blocks, while Kiera Hill led the team with two steals.
The Golden Eagles didn't technically win the rebounding battle, but they kept pace with the aggressive Hatters (1-6), edged 28-27 on the glass. Seven of Stetson's 28 rebounds glanced out of bounds with no recovery, so Tech did have 25 in play, led by seven from Reghan Grimes.
Tech never trailed in the contest, surging out by as many as eight points early in the opening 10 minutes, buoyed by a six-point barrage from Chambers with Walker and Hurst collecting the dimes. As the first stanza closed, the Golden Eagles led 19-14.
After the Hatters were able to cut Tech's lead back down to five, the Golden Eagles then went on an 8-0 run over the next 1:20 with Owens hitting a mid-range jumper, then Hurst collecting a fast-break layup off of Hill's steal and claiming the and-one off of a drawn foul. Jennifer Sullivan then drained a three after Hill forced another turnover.
Stetson briefly got the contest back into single digits before the half until Walker got the layup and the foul with 26 seconds to go before the intermission. She connected on the extra shot, giving Tech a 36-25 lead at the half.
The Hatters made adjustments though. In the third quarter, Stetson outscored Tech 15-9 and got the game back within four points three times in the period. The Golden Eagles were able to extend its lead back out to 12 midway through the quarter, but free-throws for Stetson chipped that away as a foul on Sullivan and a technical foul against Chambers led to a 3-for-4 run for Khamya McNeal, and the Hatters chipped five points away in just eight seconds as Jamiya Turner also hit a pair.
With under a minute to go, the Hatters tried to make things interesting. Turner drained a jumper in the paint with 49 seconds left, but Hurst answered with a layup. Jordan Peete drew a foul with 37 seconds remaining and hit both. Grimes drew a foul at 24 seconds, but hit the front end of two to put Tech back up by five, with Peete sinking a layup with 14 seconds to go to make it a one-possession game.
Forced to foul, Stetson put Grimes back at the line two more times as she got three of the four resulting shots to end the contest.
McNeal ended the game with 15 points, Peete scored 14, while Turner and Jaelyn Talley each had 12.
The Golden Eagles return to action on Wednesday as they host Lincoln Memorial. Tipoff for the contest is set for 6 p.m.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
Photo | Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
