by BOLIVAR, Mo. – Seniors Revonnia Howard and Justina Prairie Chief (Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribe) both tallied double-doubles as the Jennies earned a 79-67 win over host Southwest Baptist on Thursday night.
UCM (13-8, 7-6 MIAA) exploded for 51 points in the second half, a season-high. The largest lead for either team in the opening 20 minutes was four points (Jennies 11-7) in an action-filled first half that saw three lead changes.
Howard scored five quick points in the first three-plus minutes for UCM to spot the Jennies with a 5-3 lead in the early going. Redshirt sophomore Danielle Barry scored the next four points on layups, giving the Jens a 9-5 lead.
SBU came back to tie the game at 14-14 over the next 3:01, but the Jennies battled to re-claim a 26-23 lead with 2:33 to go in the first half.
After both teams exchanged a pair of made free throws, SBU’s Dilonna Johnson drained a three-pointer with two seconds left on the clock to put the game at a 28-28 deadlock going into halftime.
The Jennies shot 30% (10-of-30) from the floor and splashed two treys in four attempts (40%) in the opening half.
Senior Jasmine Thompson got the offense rolling to begin the second half, spotting up for a three-pointer just 21 seconds in.
The two foes traded baskets over the next three possessions, but junior Shelby Winkelmann and Howard combined for three made free throws to put their team ahead, 36-33 with 17:46 to play in the game.
Howard gave the Jennies their largest lead at five points with a layup at the 17:06 mark, but the Bearcats came back with a bucket from Leann Terrill, closing the gap to 38-35.
Up 40-35 with just over 15 ½ minutes to play, the Jennies defense came up with a defensive stop and increased their lead to 43-35 after Winkelmann splashed a three from the lower left corner.
Up by as many as 10 points with 10:54 to play, the Bearcats went on a 10-2 run to close to within two points at 53-51 with just under nine minutes on the clock. SBU took a 54-53 lead following a three-pointer by Dilonna Johnson, but Thompson put UCM ahead, 56-54 with a three of her own with 7:55 to play.
Thompson’s three ignited a 10-0 run for the Jennies offense. Central Missouri’s lead reached six thanks to back-to-back layups by Prairie Chief. Howard drew a foul with 5:11 to play and hit a pair of free throws to make it a 62-54 game.
SBU cut the Jennies’ lead to six with 3:50 to go, but Prairie Chief hit a turnaround layup with just over three minutes left to put the Jennies up eight.
Up by six points with 1:40 to play, Howard executed a three-point play to bump the lead back to nine.
The lead never dipped below nine for the remainder of the game as UCM snapped a two-game losing skid and picked up their third straight win against the Bearcats.
Four Jennies (Howard, Prairie Chief, Thompson, Winkelmann) scored double-digit points. Barry tallied nine points to lead all bench players.
The Jennies will return home on Saturday, February 7 to host Missouri Southern at 1:30 p.m.
