Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Lady Techsters 63, Kennesaw State 59 (Saturday at Kennesaw)
Louisiana Tech won its 15th straight game — it’s third by a total of six points — in defeating Kennesaw State 63-59 Saturday afternoon to claim the outright Conference USA regular season title.
Tied 49-49 through three quarter of action, Tech (21-5,15-1) clamped down on the Owls in the fourth quarter, holding Kennesaw State to just 10 points in picking up the league-clinching victory.
“Gritty defensive effort in the fourth quarter,” said Tech head coach Brooke Stoehr. “It comes down to defending, rebounding, and taking care of the basketball when you are on the road. I am really proud of our effort and toughness, winning in late February is hard, especially on the road.
“This is what the games are going to look like in the tournament and our team is showing that we can win in these situations. We did it with a gritty defensive effort there in the fourth.”
It marks the first regular season conference title for the Lady Techsters since the 2010-11 team captured the Western Athletic Conference crown. With the championships, Tech earned the No. 1 seed in the CUSA Tournament coming up in three weeks.
Louisiana Tech took an early lead 3-2 after Paris Bradley connected on her first triple of the night, but the Owls would take a 10-8 lead into the first media timeout. Both offenses would go back and forth with neither team taking a lead greater than four. Alexia Weaver’s layup close to the end of the quarter closed the gap to 18-16 as the Lady Techsters trailed after the first frame.
Jianna Morris nailed from deep to start the second quarter, taking a 19-18 lead for Louisiana Tech. The Owls fought back, quickly taking another lead until Morris and Bradley connected again, stretching the Lady Techsters lead back to five. Neither team could stop the other halfway through the frame with LA Tech making five shots in a row to Kennesaw’s four in a row.
Fatigue started to settle in the Kennesaw State lineup with only seven active players, closing the frame with an almost four minute drought and four turnovers. The lead stretched to seven as the teams headed to the locker room as LA Tech outscored the Owls 21-12 in the frame.
Morris and Bradley led the way with 11 points apiece. After shooting only seven triples all game in Jacksonville, the Lady Techsters shot 17 in the first half alone against KSU, shooting 41 percent from downtown.
Louisiana Tech’s offense stalled hard in the third quarter, shooting 1-8 entering the media timeout with four turnovers. The Owls took advantage, tying the game with 1:37 left to play. No more points would be scored, making the game tied 47-47 entering the final period. The Lady Techsters shot 3-13 from the field, including 0-5 from three, while turning the ball over seven times.
Both teams fought hard for the lead, tying twice at 51-all before the final media timeout. Weaver’s free throw with 4:55 left to play would give LA Tech a one point lead, one that would never be surrendered.
Bradley’s triple would shut the door while Morris three free throws would slam it, giving LA Tech a seven point lead with 37 seconds left. The Owls would make one more basket before the Lady Techsters dribbled the time out, winning 63-59 and clinching a share of the CUSA regular season title.
Bradley and Morris led LA Tech with 14 points apiece, shooting 7-18 from deep combined. Three Lady Techsters recorded four assists, including Bradley who also registered four steals. Louisiana Tech after shooting only seven threes against Jacksonville State, shot 27 against Kennesaw State, making eight.
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Kennesaw State 58, Bulldogs 55 (Saturday at Kennesaw)
Louisiana Tech’s game-tying three-pointer was off the mark as the Bulldogs dropped a 58-55 defensive slugfest to Kennesaw State on Saturday inside VyStar Arena.
LA Tech’s (15-12, 8-8 CUSA) defense came to play, holding one of the top scoring offenses in the country, KSU (16-11, 8-8 CUSA), to just 35.1 percent shooting and its lowest scoring output at home this season. The Bulldogs also controlled the glass, pulling down 12 more rebounds than the Owls, who came in ranked in the top 10 nationally in that category.
However, the combination of struggling to finish at the rim along with 18 turnovers resulted in a low-scoring night for the Bulldogs in the road loss.
“We should not have put ourselves in that position late because of the turnovers,” said head coach Talvin Hester. “I thought we guarded great for about 37 minutes, but we broke down on a few occasions, got mentally fatigued. We must be smarter down the stretch. We must hold our defensive focus. And we must take better care of the basketball.”
LA Tech trailed for much of the first half. That was until Kaden Cooper ignited for eight straight points, including a rim-rocking slam dunk and a three-pointer which helped give the ‘Dogs a 25-23 halftime advantage.
The Owls quickly regained on a made triple of their own by RJ Johnson out of the break, but four straight made free throws by Will Allen and Jaylen Fenner plus a deep three from DJ Dudley gave LA Tech its largest lead of the contest at 32-26 with 17:40 remaining.
KSU would counter with its biggest scoring run of the game, going on an 8-0 run to reclaim the lead. It was mostly a one-possession game either way for the remainder. Down three with less than four minutes left, Avery Thomas II connected on a three-pointer from the wing. Cooper added a free throw to give the Bulldogs a 51-50 edge with 3:18 to go.
The home team responded with three consecutive made jumpers, two of which came from beyond the arc. Over the final 66 seconds, LA Tech misfired on four shot attempts including a try by AJ Bates with one second left to try to force the game into overtime.
“Kennesaw State is a tough team,” said Hester. “They can stop you with their size and physical toughness. I thought we did a great job battling on the boards. But we had 18 turnovers. We cannot give a team that can really score it that many more opportunities.”
Cooper recorded his sixth double-double of the season with a game-high 18 points and 13 rebounds. Bates added 12 points, five assists, and three steals. Dudley provided 10 points and a season-high nine rebounds.
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Southern 87, Tigers 73 (Saturday in Baton Rouge)
Grambling State battled hard on the road but fell 87-73 to Southern University Saturday evening at the F.G. Clark Activity Center. The Tigers fought to stay within striking distance, but Southern’s efficiency and balanced attack proved too much down the stretch.
Jamil Muttilib led Grambling State with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 2-of-4 from three, while adding two rebounds, four assists, and a steal in 30 minutes. Muttilib helped keep the Tigers competitive with timely baskets, including a trio of mid-range jumpers and drives to the hoop.
Antonio Munoz carried much of the scoring load with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, adding five rebounds and five assists, while Jimel Lane contributed 11 points and a team-high 10 rebounds to bolster the frontcourt.
Roderick Coffee III added six points and three steals, and Rickey Ballard chipped in seven points with a three-pointer.
Grambling State opened the first half slowly, scoring just 24 points and allowing Southern to shoot over 62 percent from the field. The Tigers surged in the second half, scoring 49 points on 56.7 percent shooting and hitting 50 percent from three-point range, but were unable to overcome the early deficit.
Grambling finished with 40 points in the paint, 10 fast-break points, and 13 points off turnovers, but Southern’s hot shooting from beyond the arc and free-throw line carried the Jaguars to victory.
Southern University was led by AJ Barnes with 22 points, DaMariee Jones with 15, and Terrance Dixon Jr. with 12, as the Jaguars shot 58.8 percent from the field, including 50 percent from three.
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Southern 59, Tigers 45 (Saturday in Baton Rouge)
Grambling State University fell 59–45 to Southern University in Southwestern Athletic Conference action Saturday afternoon inside the F.G. Clark Activity Center.
Grambling State and Southern battled evenly in the opening quarter ending the frame tied at 12–12.
Southern carried a narrow edge into halftime, using a slight second-quarter push to take a 29–28 lead into the break.
The Jaguars created separation in the third quarter outscoring the Lady Tigers 13–10 to build a 42–38 advantage entering the final period.
Southern pulled away in the fourth, holding Grambling State to just seven points to secure the 14-point conference victory.
Alisha Murray paced Grambling State with 11 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for a double-double performance. Monica Marsh added 10 points off the bench, while Zaria Johnson contributed eight points and four rebounds.
Grambling State struggled from the field, shooting 28.6 percent overall and 8.3 percent from three-point range.
Southern was led by Demya Porter who finished with a game-high 17 points and nine rebounds.
