RUSTON – Louisiana Tech women’s basketball delivered in their home opener Tuesday night, overwhelming Louisiana Christian 121–34 inside the Thomas Assembly Center.
“I am proud of the way my team responded to the first two games of the season and a hard week of practice,” Lady Techster head coach Brooke Stoehr said. “I think they are starting to understand that this is the standard, this is how we are going to compete every single day. I am proud of the way that they communicated and thought that they came out with some energy on the defensive end. We as a staff challenged them to up their toughness and competitive character because we have got to be ready for conference play, but they have competed and I think we will be tough to beat when we get to the level we want to be at.”
LA Tech wasted no time asserting control, opening the game on a Jianna Morris deep shot on the first possession to put the Lady Techsters on top 3-0. The next 18 points of the game would also be scored by Louisiana Tech as it ran away with a 21–0 run fueled by relentless defense and transition scoring. Hillary Dawson and Jianna Morris sparked the early surge with inside finishes, while Alexia Weaver drilled a three-pointer to cap the run. LA Tech shot 50% from the field in the first quarter and held LCU to just one made basket, taking a commanding 28–2 led to finish the first quarter. Isla Airey anchored the paint with two blocked shots and grabbing three rebounds. The Lady Techsters scored 16 points in the paint and 12 from turnovers.
The Lady Techsters extended their advantage with a 9-0 run, fueled by points from turnovers. barrage from beyond the arc. The Wildcats ended the run off an Alaiah Jarrell three-ball, but LA Tech would roar back on a 19-0 run with three Paris Bradley three pointers. Jianna Morris would bookend the half with another deep shot, her 12th points of the game. Averi Aaron dominated the glass with four rebounds in the quarter, trailing only Jordan Marshall for the lead in the half with six. LA Tech poured in 35 points in the quarter, shooting 60.9 percent overall and 55.6 percent from three, entering halftime ahead 63–13.
Louisiana Tech’s bench took center stage in the third, continuing the offensive onslaught and defensive pressure. Marshall led the way by controlling the paint with multiple putbacks, scoring a team high eight points and grabbing a team high six boards in the quarter. Jayden Terry was perfect from the field, adding transition buckets and a three-pointer. Louisiana Tech racked up 37 points in the frame, fueled by 15 second-chance points and 26 points in the paint. Hillary Dawson’s putback would push the Lady Techsters to the century mark, closing the quarter with a 100-24 lead. Nine Lady Techsters would score in the quarter.
LA Tech closed the game with the same intensity it had throughout the match, only allowing 10 points in the quarter. Mackenzie Wurm was perfect from the field (4-for-4) and added her second block of the game. The Lady Techsters finished with 21 points in the fourth, sealing a dominant 121–34 victory.
Jordan Marshall continued her rebounding dominance with a career high 18 boards and career high 10 offensive rebounds. Marshall has grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 13 games and has logged a double-double 12 times. This is the third straight game she has led the Lady Techsters in rebounding and the second time she has scored 20 points this season.
The freshman duo of Terry and Dawson got their first collegiate start. Dawson was a near perfect 7-8 from the field, scoring 14 points with three boards and two steals. Terry was just as effective, scoring 16 points on 70 percent shooting with five assists.
Seven Lady Techsters scored in double-figures (Dawson, Weaver, Morris, Madison-Key, Bradley, Marshall, Wurm) and scored 74 in the paint. Bradley’s six assists and five steals set new season highs for the team in both statistics.
