Box Score
Three players scored in double figures and helped McMurry win its seventh straight contest scoring a season-high 84 points to the University of the Ozarks' 65 Saturday afternoon at Kimbrell Arena. Allison Nelson led with 19 points while Tarra Richardson and Maigen Sawyer pitched in 15 apiece to help the No. 8 team in the nation move to 9-1 and 6-0 in the American Southwest Conference.
McMurry shot 61 percent from the contest; Nelson was 8 of 11 from the floor and Richardson was 7 of 10 and helped McMurry with its efficient shooting effort. On defense McMurry allowed 38 points in the first half and the Ozarks trailed by just seven points at halftime.
However, the defense stiffened in the second half and McMurry held the Lady Eagles to just 8 of 34 shooting in the second half. Erica Eneks scored 22 points for the Ozarks in the losing effort including 12 of 13 from the charity stripe.
Sawyer tied Holly Potts' school record for 3-pointers in a career. The senior from Hamlin was 4 for 5, which gave her 146 since joining McMurry's team her sophomore season. She has 148 for her collegiate career after having two treys her freshman season at Hardin-Simmons.
After Sawyer's 1 for 23 start this season from behind the 3-point arc, she's connected on 19 of her last 28 3-point attempts. She'll look to become the all-time leader in next week's road trip where McMurry will face UT-Tyler Thursday and UT-Dallas Saturday.
McMurry had season-high 10 blocks including five for Richardson. The senior also had five second-half rebounds. The Ozarks out-rebounded McMurry 38-32 including a 20-10 count on the offensive glass.
Nelson scored 15 of her 19 points in the first half. McMurry had taken off 17 days since its last game against Mississippi College Dec. 19. Though its offense didn't suffer from the layoff in the first half, it took them a half to get back into the groove defensively.
McMurry held Eneks to just seven points in the second half after she scored 15 in the first period. The Lady Eagles were also flustered from behind the 3-point arc in the second half; they shot 5 of 7 in the first half and then connected on only 3 of 13 from treys in the second half.
McMurry will look to extend its winning streak to eight games on the road when it faces the Lady Patriots Thursday at 5:30 in Tyler. The Lady Eagles fell to 1-10 overall and 1-5 in ASC play. McMurry improved to 9-1 overall and 6-0 in conference play.
