The Murray State women’s basketball team picked up its third win in as many games on Saturday, when it topped a scrappy Jacksonville State squad, 68-58, at the Pete Mathews Coliseum.
Despite losing its last 30 contests, Jacksonville State (0-21, 0-9) entered the day still hungry and still determined to pick up its first win of the season. That was evident by the fact it overcame an early 11 point Murray State (12-7, 5-3) advantage to take its first lead of the game with just over six minutes left in the frame.
The Racers quickly answered and pushed their lead back out to as many four with 2:35 to play. However, the Gamecocks went on an 8-1 run to end the half and take a 33-30 lead into the locker room at the break.
In the second half, the Racers once again jumped out an early lead, thanks to three straight 3-pointers from senior Mariah Robinson and freshman Erika Sisk. Murray State went on to lead by as many as eight from that point, but Jacksonville State was not done.
The Gamecocks battled back with a 12-4 run of their own, to take a 53-50 lead with just 5:30 to play. Despite the momentum swing, the Racers buckled down and outscored Jacksonville State 18-5 in the final five minutes of the game to hold on for the 10-point win.
Free throws played an important role for the Racers in the victory, as they made good use of the 17-10 foul advantage by going 15-for-19 at the line. In comparison, the Gamecocks went to the line only 10 times, making just five of the attempts.
Murray State also committed five less turnovers in the game, losing the ball just 16 times, compared to 21 by Jacksonville State. Those 21 JSU turnovers led directly to 20 points for the Racers, while Murray State’s 16 led to 17 for the Gamecocks.
Robinson led all scorers in the game with 24 points, while Sisk followed with 22. Junior Jessica Winfrey was just one point off of her second straight double-double, as she had nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Dashauna Truss led the Gamecocks in the contest with 15 points, while Gia Banks added 14. Candace Morton was also just shy of a double-double as she finished with eight points and nine boards.
The Racers will now travel to Cookeville for a Monday showdown with Tennessee Tech. Tip-off from the Eblen Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Story courtesy of Sports Information.