Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
Mercer University
Lady Racers take advantage of Mercer miscues in 73-61 win
12/29/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Murray State Lady Racers found themselves at a disadvantage in rebounding in their game against Mercer in the Cyclone Classic at Ames, Iowa, tonight, but were able to make up for it by using the Bears' turnovers to their advantage in MSU's 73-61 win.
Murray State (4-5) will take on tournament host Iowa State (9-1) tomorrow (Thursday) at 8 p.m.
Against Mercer, the Lady Racers forced 26 turnovers and had 28 points off of turnovers to the Bears' nine. Mercer (2-5) had 48 rebounds to MSU's 30 and had 18 second-chance points to the Lady Racers' six.
Murray State was led by senior guard Rebecca Remington, who scored 20 points, with 17 of those coming in the second half, hitting eight of her 13 shots from the field, going 7-for-8 in the second half.
Freshman center Katie Willinger had career-highs with 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds and also swiped a game-high four steals.
Sophomore guard Ashley Hayes and freshman guard Shaleea Petty chipped in 11 points apiece, with Petty handing out a team-high five assists and Hayes getting four. Petty also had three steals in the game.
Hayes hit three three-point baskets, bringing her nation-leading average to 3.33 treys per game.
Mercer was paced by Rosanna Davis's 16 points to go with seven rebounds and three blocked shots, while Sarah Russell added 11 points and six boards. Jessica Miller had a game-high 13 rebounds, but was held below her team-leading average (11.3 ppg), getting eight points tonight on 4-for-16 shooting from the field. Miller handed out a game-high six assists for the Bears.
Both teams shot fairly well, with the Lady Racers hitting 43.9 percent (29 of 66) from the field and Mercer hitting 41.9 percent (26-for-62). Murray State hit five of 13 three-point tries (38.5 percent), while the Bears struggled, making only one trey in 10 tries (10 percent). Both teams struggled from the line, with MSU hitting 10 of 20 shots (50 percent) and Mercer making eight of 19 free-throw attempts (42.1 percent).
"We tried to attack more offensively," said MSU head coach Joi Felton. "In the second half, we tried harder to take advantage of (Mercer's) turnovers, and that made a big difference."
Murray State committed only 13 turnovers in the game.
