MACOMB, Ill. - Southern
Utah University had three players score in double-figures in a 65-53 Summit
League road victory over Western Illinois University Saturday afternoon.
The Thunderbirds improved to 14-12 overall
and 8-7 in conference play with their third-straight victory, avenging a
15-point defeat to the Leathernecks (7-18, 5-10 Summit League) in late January.
Senior forward Challis Pascucci notched her 12th double-double of
the season with game-highs of 18 points and 12 rebounds for SUU who held WIU to
33 percent shooting and scored 23 points off of 21 turnovers. Freshman guard
Andrea Jones came off the bench to score 15 points and senior guard Caitlyn
Sears finished with 12 while sophomore forward Tayler Anderson grabbed 11 boards
and made three steals.
Southern Utah shot 41 percent from the floor,
posted a 45-39 rebounding advantage and used a strong first half, allowing a
season-best 15 points in the first 20 minutes before going on to post the
double-digit win.
The Thunderbirds traded buckets with Western
Illinois in first eight minutes before catching firing and slowly begin to pull
away. Jones came off the bench and sparked 24-7 run over the final 10 minutes,
opening up a 33-15 lead at the break. Jones led the way with 11 points in the
first half while Southern Utah shot 43 percent and held the Leathernecks to 22
percent from the floor in the first half.
SUU opened the second half by extending its
lead to 20, 37-17 at the 18:26 mark and kept its lead in double-figures
throughout the half. The Leathernecks would get no closer than 10, with under a
minute to play before, fittingly, Jones knocked down one final jumper in the final
seconds to seal up SUU's 12-point victory.
Freshman guard Desiree Jackson had seven
points and five boards while senior point guard Kaila Goff dished out eight
assists.
Southern Utah will wrap up its road slate on
Monday, traveling to Indianapolis to face IUPUI with tip off scheduled for 5
p.m. (MST).
