Box Score
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – At the University of Northern Iowa’s McLeod Center Friday night, the University of Evansville women’s basketball team struggled to keep control of the ball committing 25 turnovers, falling to the Panthers, 69-37. The Aces are now 7-10 overall and 2-4 in the Missouri Valley Conference, while UNI improved to 13-6 overall and 6-1 in the MVC.
For the first time this season, no Evansville player reached double figures as junior
Briyana Blair led the Aces with eight points. Sophomore
Taylor Ware tallied seven points, followed by sophomore
Meagan Collins’ five points and six rebounds.
The Aces fell into a 9-0 hole to start the game. Blair put UE on the scoreboard with a foul shot at the 16:13 mark and junior
Staci Gillum tallied Evansville’s first field goal of the evening, a three, at the 14:44 mark, making the score 9-4. However, the Panthers extended their lead on a 13-2 run.
Taylor Ware provided a spark off the bench with five of the Aces first 11 points of the game, including a completed three-point play at the free throw line. Blair and freshman Hannah Weedman recorded layups before UNI scored the final six points of the half to take a 31-15 advantage into the locker rooms.
The Panthers scored nearly half (15) of their points off of the Aces’ 14 first-half turnovers. Evansville shot 22.2 percent (6-for-27) from the field, 14.4 percent from three-point range (1-for-7), and 2-for-3 from the free throw line. UNI also won the battle of the boards, 24-16, in the opening period, with 12 points coming off second chance opportunities.
Out of the break, Northern Iowa scored the first eight points until senior
Stephanie Bamberger knocked down a three at the 16:08 mark to end the scoring drought.
At the 13:57 mark, the Aces had as many points as they did turnovers with score reading 43-20. The Panthers steadily increased their lead to as much as 29 with 8:21 to go. However, a 6-0 run for the Aces, a free throw for Blair, a three for Collins, and layup for Ware, cut the score to 53-28 with under 6:30 remaining.
With 1:17 to go, UNI took their largest advantage of the game, up 34 points. Two free throws for freshman
Khristian Hart and a layup by junior
Chelsea Falkenstein were the Aces final points, as the Aces finished shooting 25.0 percent (13-for-52) from the field, 18.8 percent (3-for-16), and 72.7 percent (8-for-11) at the charity stripe. UNI outrebounded UE, 45-34.
Four Panthers reached double figures with Amber Kirschbaum recording a double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) and K.K. Armstrong leading all scorers with 13.
