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Western Illinois University Athletics

Taylor Higginbotham
WIU Visual Productions Center
55
Western Illinois WIU 14-13, 7-7
79
Winner Oral Roberts ORU 12-15, 9-6
Western Illinois WIU
14-13, 7-7
55
Final
79
Oral Roberts ORU
12-15, 9-6
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Western Illinois WIU 14 14 17 10 55
Oral Roberts ORU 17 22 20 20 79

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Golden Eagles Upend Leathernecks in Tulsa

Leathernecks close out final regular season road game with 79-55 loss to Oral Roberts

TULSA, Okla. – The Western Illinois women's basketball team closed out the road portion of its regular season schedule Saturday (Feb. 20), as the Leathernecks battled Oral Roberts. The meeting, a clash of teams ranked fourth and fifth in the league standings entering play, went the way of the Golden Eagles, 79-55. Western falls to 14-13 overall and 7-7 in league play while Oral Roberts moves to 12-15 (9-6).
 
"I think when it comes down to it, we just played really poorly," said head coach JD Gravina. "We didn't shoot it well, we didn't attack the basket well, and our offensive movement still wasn't very good even though it was better. We got some good shots, especially before we got desperate. We didn't defend well and we rebounded well for the first quarter and then didn't rebound well. I told the kids that we have to find a way to be better. We have to play at a higher level here in the last two weeks of the season."
 
Western came out aggressive, and only trailed by three after the first quarter of play. Sophie Reichelt made her presence known on the glass as she hauled in seven rebounds in the opening quarter. The rebounding effort helped Reichelt to her fifth double-double of the season, as the senior finished the game with a team-high 14 points and game-high 14 rebounds. Michelle Maher and Mallory Boyle each added four points in the opening frame for a Leatherneck team that was looking for a season sweep of the Golden Eagles.
 
Oral Roberts began to pull away in the second quarter, outscoring the Purple and Gold 22-14 to take a 39-28 lead into halftime. Western, one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the country, couldn't get anything going from beyond the arc in the first half, shooting 2-of-14 (14.3%) from deep. The Leathernecks would convert on 4-of-15 triples in the second half, ending the game with a 20.7 percent (6-of-29) from long range.
 
Out of the halftime break, it looked like Western would mount a comeback, as the Leathernecks' full court pressure forced the Golden Eagles to turn the ball over. Western used a 7-0 run to get within six, as Taylor Higginbotham's triple started the run. Emily Clemens then intercepted a Golden Eagle pass in the backcourt and converted on an uncontested layup. Maher then got a layup to fall to put Western down 41-35 with 7:18 remaining in the third. The Leathernecks would trim the lead down to five points later in the third quarter, but couldn't get any closer to Oral Roberts for the remainder of the game. An 8-0 run put the ORU advantage back to double digits and the hosts would maintain a double figure lead for the rest of the afternoon.
 
Higginbotham joined Reichelt in double figures as the freshman added 10 points and six rebounds in the effort.
 
Western Illinois returns home for the final two games of the regular season. The Leathernecks start its final homestand on Thursday, February 25, when North Dakota State comes to town. WIU's contest is part of a Leatherneck doubleheader as the men's team will take to the court immediately following the game. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. inside Western Hall.
 
 
 
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