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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.—Purdue sophomore guard Brittany Rayburn and freshman forward Sam Ostarello combined for 39 points and 17 rebounds on Saturday afternoon to lead the host Boilermakers past the visiting University of Evansville women’s basketball, 73-42, at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Purdue used an 18-7 run nine minutes into the first half to take control of the contest and build a double-digit lead. The Boilermakers used their defense to fuel the run, as eight of the 18 points came off of Evansville turnovers, as Purdue built a 29-17 lead with 5:44 to play.
A pair of traditional three-point plays by Rayburn and five points by Ostarello in the final five minutes of the first half would help the Boilermakers build a 42-17 halftime lead. The Boilermakers finished the half shooting 50.0 percent from the floor (18-for-36), while holding Evansville to just 30.0 percent shooting (6-for-20) while forcing 19 first-half turnovers. Rayburn paced the first-half attack with 12 of her game-high 22 points.
“In the first half, we came out rattled and didn’t play with a lot of composure,” said UE head coach Misty Murphy. “This was really the first time that our younger players were able to play in an environment like this, and I think that it affected them a bit, because we had 19 turnovers in the first half and a lot of them were really unforced turnovers.
“I thought that we did a much better job of playing composed and taking care of the basketball in the second half, but by that point, it was too late. Credit Purdue, though, they are a very good ballclub and they played a great game today.”
Evansville was able to trim the deficit back to 18 points after halftime thanks to a 9-2 run to open the half, before Ostarello stepped up to help keep the Purple Aces at bay. Ostarello had eight points, eight rebounds and three blocks after halftime to help the Boilermakers answer the Purple Aces early run and cruise to its fifth victory of the year.
“Ostarello was a very tough match-up for us today,” said Murphy. “Her size and athleticism and length on the wing caused problems for us, because she was able to create a lot of second-chance opportunities for herself with her length. She really stepped up today and played a great game.”
Rayburn finished with 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor, while Ostarello added a season-best 17 points, 14 rebounds, and three blocks. Senior guard Amy Gallagher paced the Purple Aces with 13 points and six rebounds, while sophomore forward Chelsea Falkenstein and freshman guard Amber Boyd each chipped in seven points apiece.
With the victory, Purdue evens its record at 5-5. Evansville, meanwhile, slips to 2-8 with the loss. The Purple Aces will wrap up non-conference play on Tuesday night at 6:00 p.m. central time, as UE will welcome 2009 NCAA Tournament participant Ball State at Roberts Stadium on “Take A Kid To The Game” day. Due to a direct time conflict with the UE men’s basketball game on Tuesday at Austin Peay, Tuesday’s game will be available on-line only at GoPurpleAces.com.
