Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The visiting Missouri State Lady Bears scored the first basket of the game and kept the lead for the remainder of the game, overcoming the University of Evansville women’s basketball team, 74-49, Saturday afternoon at the Ford Center. With the loss, the Purple Aces fall to 4-15 on the season and 1-7 in the Missouri Valley Conference, while the Bears improve to 11-6 overall and 4-3 in the MVC.

Off the bench, sophomore Miranda Liles had a career game, co-leading Evansville with 11 points and four rebounds. Senior Briyana Blair also logged 11 points, while grabbing six boards, and adding five assists. Juniors Taylor Ware (8 pts), Meagan Collins (7 pts, 5 rebs), and Jordan Lewis (6 pts, 5 rebs) also contributed offensively. The Bears held UE’s leading scorer Samantha Heck to four points, but the junior co-led the Aces on the glass with six rebounds.

In the opening half, Evansville remained within two points, 11-9, following Blair’s three at the 15:45 mark, but MSU widened the gap with a 9-0 run to take a double-digit lead for good. Lacey Boshe’s layup with 8:42 to go gave the Lady Bears a 15-point advantage, 28-13, but the Aces responded with five unanswered points. Liles hit a jumper and Lewis drained a three, cutting the deficit to 10 with 6:18 remaining in the period.

However, that would be as close as the Aces would get the rest of the game as MSU outscored UE 10-4 in the remaining minutes of the stanza to take a 38-22 lead into halftime.

Out of the break, Missouri State steadily built stretched the margin into the 20-point range. After the Lady Bears led by 27 three times, Evansville made it a 22-point game following Collins’ three and Blair’s fastbreak layup with 9:23 remaining. Unfortunately, a slew of turnovers allowed MSU to continue to build on its lead and the Bears led by 30, 74-44, with two minutes to go.

Evansville held Missouri State scoreless in the remaining time, as Liles knocked down two free throws and Lewis hit her second three of the game in the waning minutes.

MSU forced the Aces into 26 turnovers, scoring 27 points off the miscues. The Bears also won the battle of the boards, 50-39. Evansville shot 30.9 percent (17-55) from the field, 23.8 percent (5-21) from three, and 66.7 percent (10-15) from the free throw line, while Missouri State shot 38.6 percent (27-70) from the floor, 31.3 percent (5-16) from the behind the arc, and 65.2 percent (15-23) from the stripe.

The Lady Bears used a balanced scoring attack with 10 players logging points, led by Casey Garrison’s 15 and Hannah Wilkerson’s 12.

The Aces are back in action next Sunday, hosting Southern Illinois at the Ford Center. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. CT.