By Kevin Albarez, Louisiana Tech Associate Director Strategic Communications; featured photo by Josh McDaniel
RUSTON — Louisiana Tech outscored Lindenwood 24-11 in the third quarter to overcome a 10-point halftime deficit on the way to a 68-64 win in the WNIT Super 16 on Wednesday night in the Thomas Assembly Center.
Paris Bradley scored 12 of her game-high 24 points on 4-of-6 shooting in the stanza. Isla Airey was dominant on the defensive side of the court with five of her seven blocks and seven of her 12 rebounds over the 10-minute quarter.
The two teams combined to miss the first six shots with two turnovers in the first two minutes. Jordan Marshall finally got the scoring started with an and-one. On the Lady Techsters’ (18-15) next possession, Bradley found a wide-open Sydney Thomas in the corner to give Tech a 6-0 lead.
Lindenwood (23-11) used a 9-2 run over a minute and a half to take the lead. From there, the lead would change hands four more times before a Lions triple gave them an 18-15 advantage after one.
The Techster offense shot 41.7 percent in the second quarter, but six turnovers led to easy baskets by Lindenwood. Tech’s deficit grew to 10 heading into the locker room. The Lions held a 20-14 advantage in paint points at the break.
It looked like it would continue to be a struggle for the Lady Techsters in the second half after a turnover on the first possession. After that, Bradley and Airey went to work. Bradley would score on the next possession to jump-start a 24-7 run to get Tech the lead.
With LA Tech still down 10, Bradley hit a stepback three to make it 41-34. Airey would have her third block of the game on the other side of the court. Thomas would knock down another three-ball, and Airey would have another block on the other end. Another Bradley triple would force Lindenwood to call a timeout.
Airey’s lone points came on Tech’s next possession to give the Techsters their first lead since the two-minute mark in the first quarter. The Lions would finally end the 11-0 run, but Bradley would respond again to tie it up. Baskets by Jordan Marshall and Robyn Lee sandwiched another Airey rejection to give Tech a two-point lead. The 6-4 forward would have back-to-back blocks on the next Lion possession to give her seven on the day.
Tech continued to answer every point Lindenwood had in the fourth to close out the game.
Louisiana Tech finished 46.4 percent from the field (26-56), 42.9 from deep (6-14) and 71.4 percent from the line (10-14). Lee finished with 14 points, and Marshall had 12 and eight rebounds for the Techsters.
Lindenwood shot 37.5 percent for the game (27-72), 25 from behind the arc (6-24) and 80 from the free throw line (4-5). Ellie Brueggemann led five Lions in double figures with 18 points. Mya Skoff and Brooke Coffey had 12 apiece, while Gracie Kelsey and Mykayla Cunningham finished with 10.
QUOTABLES
Head Coach Brooke Stoehr
“I am really proud of this group and happy for them to continue to play. This group got to experience a great environment tonight. I’m happy for our fans and community to see what this group is all about. We get to see this every day, and they make us so proud of how they carry themselves off the court and in the classroom and work every day for each other. This time of year, you want more opportunities to be around them, coach them, and watch them do their thing.”
“Our defensive effort in the second half was tremendous. Isla was blocking everything that went up in the paint. They had 20 paint points in the first half, and I thought we needed to do a better job inside. She was really aggressive with that. The ball pressure from our guards was excellent. Sidney took a charge and got us ignited there in that third quarter and I thought we just took off from there. Then Paris went to work and did what she does.”
NOTABLES
- The seven blocks by Isla Airey ties Tori Harrison and Margaret DeCiman for the fourth most in a single game in program history, it is the most by a freshman.
- Isla Airey has 60 blocks this season, the 10th most by a Lady Techster and third most by a freshman.
- It was the eighth game of 20 or more points for Paris Bradley, breaking a tie with Janice Lawrence for the sixth most by a Lady Techster freshman.
- Jordan Marshall moves past Kay Ford and Janice Lawrence for the sixth most rebounds by a Lady Techster freshman with 284.
- Jordan Marshall has 122 free throws made on the season, one behind Janice Lawrence for the freshman record for LA Tech.
- Paris Bradley has 120 free throws made on the season, the third most by a freshman.
- Paris Bradley moves past Jianna Morrisfor the second most minutes played by a freshman with 1,062.
- Robyn Lee passes Teresa Weatherspoon for the 40th most points by a Lady Techster with 1,092.
- The 15 wins in the TAC are the most by the Lady Techsters since 2002-03 when they had 15.
- Louisiana Tech improved to 1-0 all-time against Lindenwood.
UP NEXT
Louisiana Tech will find out their next opponent on Thursday night. The Lady Techsters will take on the winner of Illinois State and Abilene Christian with the site and date to be determined at the conclusion of the game.