Clayton Noakes

Big Second Half Lifts Lady Cats over LETU

2/9/2018 12:01:00 AM

By: LC Sports Information - Brad Welborn

Box Score

A huge second half performance lifted the Louisiana College women's basketball team to their second win of the week, a 77-62 victory over LeTourneau University on Thursday night. The Wildcats shot almost 20 percentage points better from the field in the second half in route to the win. The Wildcats close out their week schedule with a big-time matchup on Saturday afternoon at H.O. West Fieldhouse against rival East Texas Baptist.

Just as they did on Monday night against Belhaven, the Wildcats came out a little flat on the offensive end and found themselves trailing LeTourneau by as much as 11 points in the first quarter. As they are known to do the Wildcats scored a burst of points to finish the first 10 minutes on a 9-0 run to pull within a pair of LETU 19-17.

The Wildcats picked up some steam in the second quarter, but LeTourneau was still able to maintain their lead through the entire period. A three-pointer by RyDeja McQuarn cut the lead back to just two with 6:53 left in the quarter but the Yellowjackets quickly stretched their lead back to six by the midway point of the quarter. LETU shot almost 50 percent from the field in the first half while the Wildcats made just 35 percent of their attempts in the half.

Once again it was a dominant third quarter performance by the Wildcats that not only eliminated their deficit but gave them their first lead of the game. While it was a team effort on the defensive end that limited the Yellowjackets to just 13 third quarter points, it was the dominance of senior Brooke Jones that set the tone on offense. Jones went 4-of-5 in the third quarter alone with 10 points including scoring nine straight points that eventually put the Wildcats ahead 45-42. After a tying the game on the next possession with a long ball, LC finished the third on a 10-3 run to take the 55-48 lead into the fourth.

The run did not end there however, as the Wildcats started the fourth quarter with an 18-0 run through the first seven minutes of play. It wasn't until a pair of free throws with 3:17 left in the game that LeTourneau scored and did not get their first field goal until the 2:44 mark. The Wildcats shot 60 percent in the fourth quarter and collected 16 rebounds, 12 of the on the defensive glass to secure the easy win.

Brooke Jones led all scorers with 19 points, adding seven rebounds to her effort. RyDeja McQuarn finished with 14 points, while Zharian Maxmillion and Taylor Payne each just missed double-doubles with 12 points and nine rebounds for Maxmillion and 10 points and eight rebounds for Payne.

The Wildcats finish their three game American Southwest Conference schedule this week on Saturday against the 12-3 ETBU Tigers at H.O. West Fieldhouse. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon on LC' s campus. Stay connected to Louisiana College women's basketball by following @LC_WBB on Twitter. For general athletics news follow @LC_Wildcats on Twitter or like Louisiana College Wildcats on Facebook.

Print Friendly Version