Story by Gage Johnson
Senior writer
gjohnson17@murraystate.edu
Murray State women’s basketball traveled to Champaign, Illinois, for a Tuesday matchup against the University of Illinois, and fell to the Fighting Illini 84-52.
Illinois would gain the first lead of the game at 2-0, and there would not be a single lead change after.
The Racers started off the game by holding the Fighting Illini to just 14 points in the first quarter. However, poor shooting led to Murray State trailing 14-6 heading into the second quarter of play.
Illinois then proceeded to take over the game, kicking the second quarter off with a 12-0 run. 18-for-33 shooting from the field (54.5 percent) would allow the Fighting Illini to head into the locker room holding a commanding 42-19 lead over the Racers.
Murray State struggled to make shots from the field, shooting just 8-for-36 (22.2 percent) in the first half. This would be the Racers’ Achilles heel on the night, finishing the game 19-for-70 (27.1%).
Murray State has struggled to shoot the ball as of late, and Head Coach Rechelle Turner thinks any improvement will come down to simply shooting through the funk.
“I thought for the most part we got good shots, we just weren’t knocking them down,” Turner said. “That’s just uncharacteristic. We’ve got to figure things out and shoot with a little more confidence.”
The Racers would go on to be outscored 42-33 in the second half, en route to a 84-52 loss. This loss leaves Murray State winless on the road this season, with two tough non-conference road opponents in the University of Kentucky and the University of Tennessee on the schedule.
Despite the lackluster performance, junior forward Evelyn Adebayo shined, notching a double-double on the night with 23 points and 13 rebounds.
Adebayo praised the team’s effort for continuing to play hard despite their deficit throughout the majority of the game.
“Today just wasn’t our night,” Adebayo said. “The fact that we stayed together and we kept hustling and playing hard, we know it will pay off in the future.”
Murray State will return home for its next game against Bethel University at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13, at the CFSB Center.