ROCHESTER, Mich. – Senior DeeDee Murphy recorded a career-high 17 points for the Western Illinois women's basketball team, but it was not enough as the Westerwinds (9-16, 5-6 Mid-Con) fell just short to Oakland 52-55 at the Athletics Center O'Rena.
Murphy was spurred on by a large crowd of family and friends that made the short trip to Rochester, Mich. The Detroit, Mich., native also added three rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
“DeeDee had a heck of a night with 17 points," said head coach Leslie Crane. "She made a big difference in this game.”
The first half was another defensive battle with both teams forcing larger numbers of turnovers than normal. Coming into the game, the Golden Grizzles (14-10, 9-1 Mid-Con) were only averaging 9.63 turnovers per game and committed nine in the first half. The Westerwinds were committing 13.5 per game, but were forced into 15 in the first 20 minutes.
Murphy hit the first shot of the game to put Western up 3-0. Oakland then went on a 6-0 run over the next six minutes to gain a 6-3 lead, but Western would return the favor. The Westerwinds regained the lead after a 9-1 run over a five-minute span, but were unable to hold it through the rest of the half as they went to the locker room down one point (21-20).
Both teams had problems sinking shots, with Western shooting 36.8 percent and the Grizzlies hitting only 36.4 percent of their shots. The key to this was defense as both teams forced each other to run down the shot clock and take several last second shots.
The second half was much of the same as the teams battled back-and-forth for the lead. Western used strong defense and good three-point shooting to go on a 12-4 run from the 18 minute mark until just over 12 minutes remaining, with all of Oakland's points coming on free throws. Western got two three-point shots from Murphy during the span.
The game came down to the final three minutes, when the Westerwinds tied the game at 48 and it remained that way until 1:17 remaining when Melissa Jeltema hit a lay-up to take the lead for good.
Western will continue its final road trip before the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament with the final league meeting with Valparaiso, Feb. 17. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:35 p.m.
Notes: This was the first close game at home for Oakland in the last five games … in the previous four outings the Grizzlies out-scored their opponents by no less than 20 points … Western out-rebounded Oakland 32-26 during the game … Western forced the Grizzlies to 13 turnovers, while tallying seven steals … the Westerwinds held Oakland to just two three-point shots on the night, while hitting eight of their own … junior Gina Hugelier tallied 12 points for Western, as the only other player in double-digits.
Quotes
Western Illinois Head Coach Leslie Crane
“It goes back to the little things that we continue to struggle with. Our turnovers were a big factor, especially since when we had 15 in the first half.”
“We did a much better job in the second half defensively. We kept switching defense and were able to wear them out.”
“I am proud of the effort that this team puts forth. We stayed within in our game plan and never let them get into a rhythm offensively. We held them to 14 percent on their own floor from the three-point line and that is the reason why we were in this ball game.”
