MURRAY, Ky.—The Murray State women’s basketball team exploded for 50.0 percent shooting in the second-half on Saturday, including going 6-for-13 from three-point range after halftime, to shoot past the visiting University of Evansville Purple Aces, 85-77 at the Regional Special Events Center in Murray, Kentucky.

 

Evansville led for much of the early part of the contest, building a 63-53 lead with 11:59 to play, before the Racers exploded. Murray State used a 16-3 run in which the Racers hit six of their seven shots, including four three-pointers to quickly erase the UE lead and take a 72-66 lead with 7:53 to play. Murray State reserve guard Mallory Schwab hit three of her four three-pointers and totaled nine of her 16 points to key the run.

 

Evansville would end the run with a pair of Stephanie Bamberger free throws to get back within four points, 72-68, with 7:40 to play, but the Racers would respond with a lay-up by sophomore guard Rachael Isom and a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Kristen Kluempers on back-to-back possessions to grab a 76-68 lead with 6:51 to play. From there, Evansville could get no closer than six points as the Racers extended their home-court winning streak to 21 games, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.

 

“Once again, I thought that we started out strong and played extremely well for the first 30 minutes,” said UE head coach Misty Murphy. “But, just like against Samford last weekend, we let off the gas a little bit and Murray State made us pay.

 

“They were able to hit a few three-pointers back-to-back to get their crowd into the game, and from that point, we did not have a response. It is really disappointing, because we did a lot of good things in this game for the first 30 minutes. We need to learn that we can not let up in our intensity level and we have to remain focused for a full 40 minutes.”

 

Bamberger tied freshman forward Samantha Heck for team-high scoring honors with 14 points, as Bamberger scored 12 of her 14 points after halftime. She also added six assists against zero turnovers and grabbed five rebounds for the Purple Aces in 33 minutes of action. Sophomore forward Chelsea Falkenstein and senior guard Amy Gallagher joined them in double-figures with 12 and 10 points each.

 

Sophomore guard Rachael Isom led three Racers in double-figures with a career-high 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the floor. Schwab added 16 points in 18 minutes off of the Murray State bench, while Kluempers pitched in 13 points and eight rebounds in the post.