SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State women’s basketball improved to 18-8 (13-4 MVC) on the season with a 63-51 victory over Evansville (11-15, 6-11) here Thursday night at Great Southern Bank Arena.
The Lady Bears found a spark out of the halftime break, taking control of the game in the third quarter to ultimately propel them to the victory. After leading by just one point at the half, the two teams swapped shots to start the second half, keeping the Lady Bears ahead by just a single possession.
However, the Lady Bears finally broke through and reeled off a five-point run that was capped by a Sydney Wilson three-pointer, marking MSU’s only triple of the night, to give Missouri State a seven-point advantage near the midway point of the third quarter. A few minutes later, Indya Green and Paige Rocca knocked down three jumpers between them to push MSU’s lead to double figures at 42-32 with just over a minute remaining in the third period. MSU eventually carried a nine-point, 45-36, lead into the final quarter after outscoring Evansville 22-14 in the third.
The fourth quarter saw a back-and-forth battle as the Purple Aces cut the Lady Bear lead to five points on multiple occasions, including at the 1:58 mark in the final period. MSU answered quickly with back-to-back buckets from Jade Masogayo and Kennedy Taylor to put the home team back in front by nine to force Evansville to foul late in the game. The Lady Bears knocked down four free throws in the final 0:43 seconds to secure a 63-51 victory and improve to 10-4 at home on the season.
Missouri State got off to a sluggish start Friday night, as the Lady Bears found themselves down 13-3 with the 3:37 left on the clock in the opening quarter. Rocca eventually sparked the offense for MSU, as she and Masogayo hit consecutive shots to cut the deficit to six points, 13-7, after the first 10 minutes. Rocca then connected on two free throws to open the second period and pull MSU back within four.
The Lady Bears then used a 10-3 spurt, spanning nearly six minutes, to take their first lead of the game with 1:27 left in the first half. A couple of Evansville free throws put the visitors back in front by one before Thomas closed the half with a layup to give MSU a 23-22 lead at the break.
Thomas and Rocca led the way for MSU with 15 points each, while Thomas grabbed five rebounds and Rocca went 5-for-7 from the field. Taylor posted her ninth double-double with an 11-point, 13-rebound performance, while also collecting two steals against the Purple Aces. Green hauled in 10 rebounds, marking her 11th double-figure rebounding game of the season.
As a team, the Lady Bears won the battle on the boards, 49-31, including grabbing 21 offensive rebounds. MSU scored 13 points off 18 Evansville turnovers and won the scoring battle in the paint, 28-24. The Lady Bears collected 10 steals and dished out 14 assists in the victory, while holding the Purple Aces to 33 percent shooting from the field and just one three-point field goal.
Missouri State will be back in action for its final home game of the season on Saturday, Feb. 25 as the Lady Bears host Indiana State on Senior Day. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. CT at Great Southern Bank Arena.
MSU is running a women’s basketball “1-2-3 Saturdays” ticket special this Saturday. The deal consists of $1 tickets in select areas, $2 hot dogs and $3 Coca-Cola products for the Lady Bear game on February 25.
