By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Lake Worth, Fla.---Indian River State College dialed up a 7-for-8 performance from 3-point range in the third quarter today to knock off the No. 7 Owens Community College women's basketball team 75-62 in the opener of the New Year's Basketball Bash at Palm Beach State College.
In the crucial third quarter, Indian River outscored Owens 27-18 to open up a 10 point lead heading into the fourth. Owens was able to open the fourth on a 4-0 run, but that was as close as they could get as Indian River stretched its lead to as much as 15 midway through the quarter.
Early on, Mikayla Ward (Huron/Ypsilant, Mich.) scored the game's first points on a second chance layup, but both teams appeared sluggish as they alternated baskets and were tied at 11 with 5:49 left in the first quarter. At that point, however, Indian River closed the quarter on an 8-1 run, which turned into a 16-3 outburst over the next eight minutes, to take a 27-14 lead.
Sparked by a pair of buckets from Jeryn Reese (Mansfield/Mansfield, Ohio) and a layup from Mekaila Grose (Madison/Mansfield, Ohio), Owens then scored the game's next six points.
During the stretch, Kyra Johnson (Stevenson/Livonia, Mich.) and Tatyana Reynolds (Rogers/Toledo, Ohio) took a pair of charges, the second of which led to a technical foul from Indian River's Madison Evans.
Lakyn Gulley (South Side/Fort Wayne, Ind.) hit both free throws, and Reynolds followed with a 3-pointer off a pass from Gulley as Owens completed an 11-0 run to pull within two with three minutes left in the half.
Following a 3-pointer from Indian River's Alexandra Kolb, Owens scored the next five points to tie the game with 41 seconds left. Aysah Ingram (Trotwood-Madison/Dayton, Ohio) capped the 16-3 run with a layup off an offensive rebound.
Indian River's Rosanna Jenije converted a free throw with nine seconds left to put Owens in a 31-30 deficit at the half.
In the second quarter, Owens outscored Indian River 10-4 in the paint and 14-4 in points off turnovers. They also made 6-for-12 from the field, including 1-for-2 from 3-point range while also making 5-for-6 from the foul line.
In the third quarter, however, Evans more than made up for her technical foul one quarter earlier. The guard made all four of her 3-point field goal attempts in the 10 minute stretch as her team went 9-for-14 from the field in the third.
Ingram, who scored 10 of her team's 18 points in the third quarter, finished with a game-high 18 points to go along with six rebounds (four offensive), two assists and two steals. She went 7-for-10 from the field and 4-for-5 from the foul line.
Gulley added 11 points, while Reynolds had 10. Grose was the next closest with eight points, and she added two assists and two steals. Gulley had a team-high three steals, while Briana Williams (Stebbins/Dayton, Ohio) led the team with four assists. Reese tied Ingram for the team-high in rebounds with six.
Overall, Indian River out-rebounded Owens 47-28, which included a 20-11 advantage on the offensive glass. Both teams also combined for 41 turnovers, with Indian River nabbing 25 of them.
For Indian River, Evans sparked her team's fire offensively and defensively as she had game-highs in points (27) and steals (9) to go along with four rebounds and three assists. She went 7-for-13 from the field (5-for-7 from 3-point range) and 8-for-8 from the foul line.
Indian River also got 10 points apiece from Elaine Field and Aliya Ruffin, along with 12 rebounds from Jazmin House. They finished 10-for-16 from 3-point range as a team.
Owens is now 10-5 overall. They will take on host school Palm Beach State College at 12 p.m. in the finale of the New Year's Basketball Bash.
Notes
Sybil Roseboro (Elyria/Elyria, Ohio) made her season debut for Owens today. After missing the first 14 games, the freshman guard tallied one point, two assists and two steals in 13 minutes.