Southern Illinois University
3-20, 1-13
Evansville*
15-8, 8-6
Women's Basketball Loses to Evansville, 67-55
02/19/2005 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
EVANSVILLE, IND. -
Evansville (15-8, 8-6) used a 15-0 second-half run to break open a one-point contest and post a 67-55 victory over Southern Illinois (3-20, 1-13) at Roberts Stadium.
With the Purple Aces nursing a one-point lead at 39-38 with 14:41 to play, UE rattled off 15-straight points over the next three minutes to grab a commanding 54-38 cushion. The Purple Aces hit seven of eight shots during the run, while forcing five SIU turnovers. Freshman guard Rebekah Parker scored six of her eight points during the 15-0 UE run to lead the charge
Junior guard Sarah Hyslop began the run with a three-pointer with 14:18 to play, which gave UE a 42-38 lead. After a steal by senior forward Jennifer Utterback, sophomore center Laura Gaybrick worked a lay-up to extend the Aces' advantage to 44-38.
Gaybrick came up with a steal on the defensive end on the next SIU possession, and Hyslop buried another jumper, this time inside the arc, to give UE a 46-38 lead.
Parker scored six of the next eight UE points on lay-ups, as junior guard Megan Liffick also added a lay-up during the Purple Aces' run, to give Evansville a 54-38 cushion. Parker's fastbreak lay-up with 11:19 to play capped the UE run, and SIU would not get closer than nine points the rest of the way.
UE led by only one point at the break, 30-29, thanks to a tough Saluki defensive effort, and the play of junior guards Megan Liffick and Sarah Hyslop.
SIU held UE to only 32.4 percent shooting from the floor (11-of-34), including just 3-of-15 from three-point range (20.0 percent). Liffick and Hyslop combined for 17 of the Purple Aces' 30 first half points, as Liffick tossed 10 points and Hyslop added seven.
Liffick finished the night leading all scorers with 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor and 7-of-8 shooting from the foul line. Hyslop was second on the squad with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field.
SIU senior guard Daphney Desamours had 18 points to lead the way for the Salukis.
The game was played in front of 1,507 people at Roberts Stadium, and with the crowd, the UE women's program established a new single-season attendance record of 13,387.
