Drury (27-6): 71
Southern Indiana (22-9): 48
Box Score | Photo Gallery
HOUGHTON, Mich.—The University of Southern Indiana women’s basketball team fell to Drury University, 71-48, in the first round of the NCAA II Midwest Region Tournament Friday.
USI (22-9) jumped out to an early 9-4 lead and led by a point with 11 minutes to play in the first half, but a 20-5 run propelled the Panthers to a 34-20 lead with three minutes remaining in the opening period.
The sixth-seeded Screaming Eagles, behind 18 first-half points from junior guard Ellen Young, cut the deficit to nine points at the break, but struggled on the offensive end in the second period as the GLVC Tournament champion and third-seeded Panthers pulled away in the final 20 minutes.
Senior guard/forward Abby Williams had a team-high six rebounds to go with two assists and two steals in her final collegiate game.
Drury (27-6) held the Eagles to just four field goals and a .160 shooting clip in the final period as it pushed its advantage to 17 points six minutes into the second half. The Panthers out-rebounded the Eagles 27-14 in the final period and outscored USI 28-18 in the paint as they extended their advantage to as many as 25 points late in the contest.
Young led the Eagles with a game-high tying 20 points to go along with five rebounds, while senior forward Anaris Sickles chipped in eight points and four rebounds. Senior guard/forward Abby Williams finished with two points, six rebounds, and two assists in her final collegiate contest.
As a team, the Eagles shot 27.4 percent (17-62) from the field, 23.5 percent (4-17) from three point range. The Panthers shot 39.7 percent (23-58) from the field and 47.4 percent (9-19) from beyond the arc.
The loss ends the Eagles’ season, while Drury advances to play the winner of the University of Indianapolis-Northern Michigan University game.