SAU Sports Information
ALVA, Okla. – Led by Shana Holmes' 17 points and seven assists, the Southern Arkansas Lady Mulerider basketball team picked up their first program win in Alva, Oklahoma, as they used a big 26-6 third quarter to action to run by the Northwestern Oklahoma State Rangers, 77-56, in a Great American Conference affair on Thursday night inside Percefull Fieldhouse.
The win gives Southern Arkansas 13; their most wins in a season since the 2006-07 season when they finished the year 14-14.
Aiding Holmes' performance were classmates Tierra Tucker and Rosa Bryant. Tucker finished with a dozen points and six rebounds, while Bryant registered her 14th double-double of the season by collecting 10 points and 14 rebounds. Freshman forward Alyssa Hamilton tied her career-high in scoring with 10 points in only 11 minutes of work.
The Lady Muleriders (13-5, 9-5 GAC) shot over 48% (33-of-68) from the floor and outrebounded Northwestern by 13 after producing a team season-high 52 rebounds. SAU led 41-34 at the intermission, while all together possessing the advantage for 39:54 seconds.
With an eight-point lead to start the third quarter, Southern Arkansas pushed their lead to 11 in the first three and a half minutes of the second half. Shunta Nevitt scored a pair of baskets out of the break to help give SAU a 51-40 lead.
Jumpers from Tucker and Holmes pushed the advantage to 15, before the latter scored back-to-back layups with 4:14 remaining in the third quarter pushing SAU's lead to 19, 59-40. A bucket from Jasmyn Eckerman followed by two inside baskets by Hamilton under a minute and a half to play sent SAU out front by 25, before Rachel Medina capped the +20 third quarter with a jumper at the horn to give SAU a comfortable 67-40 advantage.
The only Ranger points in that third quarter came via a pair of three pointers twenty-seven seconds apart from each other in the opening four minutes of action in the second half.
SAU forced eight steals led by a pair from Caroline Ficher and as a team the Lady Muleriders forced Northwestern to shoot at a clip of 30.4% from the field.
Southern Arkansas closes out the Oklahoma portion of their regular season schedule on Saturday with a noon tip-off against Southwestern Oklahoma State in Weatherford. Live stats