Murray State
Morehead State
Lady Racers rally in second half, but can't complete comeback, 61-58
1/31/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
After a dismal first half, the Murray State Lady Racers found themselves trailing 48-31 with 15:35 left in the game, but mounted a staunch comeback, outscoring visiting Morehead State 27-12 over the next 14 minutes to pull to within two, 60-58, but Murray State couldn't complete the comeback, falling short 61-58 in the Regional Special Events Center tonight.
In the first half, Murray State (8-11, 4-4 OVC) shot 32.1 percent from the field (9-for-28) and committed 12 turnovers, while Morehead State hit 42.9 percent (15-for-35) from the field to take a 35-27 halftime lead.
The Lady Eagles (8-11, 5-3 OVC) opened the second half on a 13-4 run, taking a 48-31 lead when DeVonda Williams hit a layup with 15:35 left in the game.
That's when Murray State went to work. The Lady Racers scored the next six points when sophomore center Lori Trumblee hit a jumpshot, then freshman guard Ashley Hayes hit a jumper and Trumblee hit another jumper to pull Murray to within 48-37 with 12:05 left.
Morehead State took a 56-43 lead when Haley Gilmore hit a three with 9:10 left, but the Lady Racers outscored Morehead 15-4 over the next eight minutes. Junior guard Rebecca Remington hit back-to-back baskets, then Trumblee hit back-to-back layups to pull Murray to within 56-51 with 6:46 left.
Kandi Brown hit a three for Morehead, and Murray countered with a layup by Hayes. A free throw by Morehead's Williams gave the Lady Eagles a 60-53 lead, but a three from senior guard Jenny Bowden and a jumper by Remington had the Lady Racers knocking on the door, 60-58, with 1:24 left.
With only three team fouls in the half at that point, Murray State was forced to foul, committing four fouls in a four-second span with 27 second left. Megen Gearhart missed the second of two free-throw attempts, and Murray junior guard Brittany Park came down with the rebound.
Park drove downcourt and launched a three that missed, but Fuqua grabbed the rebound. Bowden put up a three that rimmed out, but Remington got the carom, and the Lady Racers called a timeout with 11 seconds left, trailing 61-58.
Fuqua came out and fired a three that missed. Morehead State got the rebound, but turned the ball over. Fuqua put up one last three attempt that bounced out, ending the game.
"We had every opportunity to win at the end to come back and get the win," said Murray State head coach Joi Williams. "We just couldn't pick up the loose balls.
"We came out and didn't play with a lot of defensive intensity like we did Thursday. That was important in order to put us in a position to become successful.
"We really played just eight minutes," Williams said. "I am very disappointed. I was hoping to build on what we did Thursday. We still have a lot of games left."
Holmes and Remington led four Murray State scorers in double-figures. Fuqua and Trumblee added 10 points apiece for the Lady Racers.
Trumblee grabbed a team-high eight rebounds, while Holmes had five. Bowden handed out a team-high four assists, while Hayes and Remington had three apiece. Holmes and Trumblee swiped a team-high three steals each, and Trumblee rejected a co-game-high three blocked shots.
Morehead State was paced by 18 points from Gearhart, who also had a co-game-high three steals. Williams grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, while Brown and TaNeisha Johnson had five assists each. Shelly Johnson blocked three shots for the Lady Eagles.
Murray State begins a five-game road swing, not returning to the RSEC until Feb. 19. The Lady Racers visit Eastern Illinois on Thursday, then Southeast Missouri on Feb. 7. The Lady Racers then travel to Tennessee Tech on Feb. 12 and Austin Peay on Feb. 14 before closing out the tour on Feb. 17 at Tennessee-Martin. All of those games can be heard through the Teamline link at www.GoRacers.com or locally through WNBS (1340 AM).
