Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Junior Mallory Ladd and freshman Sara Dickey led the University of Evansville women's basketball team to 78-68 victory over cross-town rival Southern Indiana in an exhibition game Saturday afternoon at the Ford Center.  Ladd posted a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Dickey scored 19 points in her collegiate debut.
 
Four players finished in double figures for Evansville, including Dickey, who scored 17 of her 19 points in the first half and finished 8-for-15 from the floor with six rebounds.  Ladd connected on six of her 13 shot attempts and was a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line.  Senior Katie Ellerson and freshman Dakota Weatherford added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
The Purple Aces opened the contest on a 7-0 run, as Dickey sank the first two shots for UE and Ladd created a pair of Southern Indiana turnovers with two steals.  Autumn Miller got the Screaming Eagles on the board with a three-pointer at the 17:59 mark to cut the Evansville lead to 7-3.
 
Anna Hackert pulled USI within four at 9-5 on a layup with 15:45 remaining in the period, before the Aces began to pull away by going on a 12-4 run over the next eight minutes.
 
Dickey started the scoring rally with a layup following a steal by Ellerson and Ladd capped the run by converting a three-point play, as she was fouled on a layup and made the ensuing free throw to put UE up, 21-9, with 7:41 left in the period.
 
The two teams traded baskets for the rest of the half, as Evansville led, 43-30, heading into the locker room.  The Aces shot 46.9 percent in the opening period, as they connected on 15 of their 32 first-half shot attempts, while limiting Southern Indiana to a 32.3 percent clip.
 
Early in the second half, USI cut the UE margin to 44-34 on a layup by Ariel Barnes, but Evansville was able to respond and pushed its lead back to 14 at 50-36 on a bucket by Ellerson with 13:40 left to play.
 
Southern Indiana slowly began to chip away at the Aces' advantage, when Miller sank a trey to pull the Eagles back within single digits, 52-43, at the 10:36 mark.  USI continued its three-point barrage, as Miller and Stephanie Carpenter hit three-straight shots from beyond the arc, cutting the UE's lead to just four at 61-57 with 7:26 showing on the clock.
 
That was as close as Southern Indiana would get, as sophomore Laura Friday stopped the run with a key three-pointer on the next possession, sparking an 11-2 Evansville run.  Ladd hit a pair of free throws and connected from long range during the scoring spurt, before Dickey made a driving layup to cap the run and put the Aces back in front, 72-59, with 4:28 to play.
 
The Eagles trimmed the lead to 10 points on a pair of occasions, but UE was able to maintain its advantage and secure the 78-68 victory.
 
Both teams grabbed 41 rebounds, with eight of them coming on the offensive glass.  Evansville forced 22 USI turnovers and were able to turn them into 19 points and were able to scored 24 points in the paint to Southern Indiana's 22. 
 
The Aces shot 38.7 percent from the field for the contest, while the Eagles hit 34.5 percent of their attempts.  UE finished 22-for-28 from the free throw line, while USI hit 23 of its 32 shots from the charity stripe.
 
Carpenter led Southern Indiana with 20 points, Hackert added a double-double with 18 points and team-high 11 rebounds, while Mary O'Keefe finished with nine points and four rebounds.
 
Evansville will open the regular season Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m., when it welcome Eastern Illinois to the Ford Center.