Morehead, Ky.-- Morehead State's women's basketball overcame a cold shooting night to prevail over Southeast Missouri 63-57 Thursday night in Johnson Arena.
Morehead State (8-15/3-10 OVC) shot just 15-59 (25%) but dominated Southeast Missouri (4-18/2-11 OVC) on the glass, outrebounding the Redhawks 48-36 including gathering 22 offensive rebounds leading to a 17-7 advantage in second-chance points.
"I really proud of the effort," said Interim Head Coach Chris Palmer. "We talked all week about stopping them in transition, hitting the offensive glass and getting to loose balls."
The Eagles were led in scoring by Chrishawn Coleman with 22 points, her fourth game of the season scoring over 20 points. The freshman from Arlington, Tex., got off to a fast start with 10 points in the opening quarter.
Kuryn Brunson added 11 points, matching her career high. Sophomore Kate Novik, returning to the lineup after missing six straight games, added nine points and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds. Katie Dike pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds.
MSU only shot 5-19 in the opening frame but got eight offensive rebounds leading to a 7-0 advantage in second chance points and took a 20-14 lead into the second quarter.
Both teams struggled on the offensive end in the second quarter, combining for only six made field goals between them. The Eagles outscored the Redhawks 11-9 in the quarter and took a 31-23 lead into the half.
"We talked about this game with the team the past couple of days," said Palmer, "and we recognized this was a must-win game if we are going to get into the OVC tournament."
Southeast Missouri held the Eagles to just three field goals in the third quarter, outscoring MSU 18-15 and the Eagles led 46-41 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Eagles used timely free throw shooting in the fourth quarter going 9-13 to seal the win.
SEMO was led by Zoe Best and Lexi McCully with 16 points each. Ainaya Williams added 10.
BY THE NUMBERS
