LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas State women’s basketball team forced the issue Monday night, and it paid off with a 75-44 victory over Austin Peay at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro.
ASU (3-7) shot a season high 55.8 percent from the field and forced a season-high 22 turnovers on its way to its largest margin of victory this season.
Junior Jane Morrill led ASU with 14 points, and senior guard Ashley Olvera added 13. Hanna Qedan finished with career highs in points (12), blocks (3) and steals (2), while junior Carlisha Wyatt grabbed a career-best 14 rebounds.
“The players had fun tonight and we got everybody involved,” ASU Coach Brian Boyer said. “There is no question that we have challenged this team with a difficult schedule, and we spent a lot of time on the road and our record reflects that, but I feel like this team has done a good job of keeping their heads up and staying focused on the task, and I think tonight that showed that a little bit.”
Qedan scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in the first half. She scored five consecutive points to give the Red Wolves a 17-14 lead with 9:20 left in the half and blocked three shots.
ASU shot a season-high 55.8 percent from the field by working the ball inside to its post players and attacking the basket off the dribble. Morrill went 5 of 7 from the field, while Qedan and Olvera were both 5 of 6.
ASU held Austin Peay (3-7) to 27 percent shooting from the field.
ASU outscored Austin Peay 18-7 in the first seven minutes of the second half to build a 49-27 lead. Morrill took advantage of her size underneath the basket, while Qedan and Olvera knocked down jump shots to help extend ASU’s lead to 49-27 with 13:27 left in the game.
The Red Wolves led by as many as 35 with 2:22 to go thanks a big night from its bench. ASU played 14 players, and 11 scored. Freshman Jessica Flanery knocked down a career-best 3 three-pointers and finished with nine points.
“We talk about having young talent, and I think tonight is an example of that,” Boyer said. “We go deep on our bench with a lot of freshmen and we still extended the lead with them, and that is a good sign.”
NEBRASKA-OMAHA 67, ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF 63
PINE BLUFF - Nebraska-Omaha (7-2) rallied from a slow start to defeat Arkansas-Pine Bluff (2-6) Monday night at H.O. Clemmons Arena.
The Mavericks fell behind 14-4 early in their first road game of the season and trailed 35-26 at halftime, but the Mavericks rallied by shooting 66.7 percent from the floor in the second half.
Paige Frauendorfer led Nebraska-Omaha with 18 points on 8-of-15 shooting, which included going 2 of 3 from three point range. Ericka House had 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting in her return to her home state. Carolyn Blair-Mobley added 11 points, and Taijhe Kelly had eight rebounds for the Mavericks.
The Mavericks shot 53.8 percent from the field and outscored Arkansas-Pine Bluff 41-28 in the second half. After trailing by nine at halftime, Nebraska-Omaha whittled Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s lead to four in the first five minutes of the second half, and the Mavericks built a 54-46 lead with 6:54 to play after a 28-11 run to open the second half.
Lakendra Marsh led the Lady Lions with 15 points.
Sports, Pages 20 on 12/18/2012