OWU comes up short vs. visitor
By Mike Erwin merwin@examiner-enterprise.com
Wednesday, January 12, 2011 12:19 PM CST
Although official records will state to the contrary, Oklahoma Wesleyan women’s coach Britney Kannady insists that it was not her Lady Eagles basketball team which lost the conference opener Tuesday to Southwestern Christian University, 67-50.
It may be her player’s names listed in the scorebook. And the people she sent onto the court at Mueller Events Center certainly looked like her squad members. But once out there, they surely didn’t play like the team she is used to seeing.
In a showdown of double Lady Eagles launching 2011 action in the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference, OWU uncharacteristically committed more turnovers than its opponent and connected on a paltry 31 percent of its field-goal attempts.
At the free-throw line, where Wesleyan’s Lady Eagles usually shoot with 80 percent accuracy, they managed to make just 10 of 20 on Tuesday.
As a result, Oklahoma Wesleyan came out on the short end in its MCAC debut and falls to 6-9 on the season. Southwestern Christian is now 5-11.
“They have played a tough schedule and are better than their record showed,” said Kannady of the visitors from Bethany, Okla. “The main thing in this game was that they wanted the ball more than us.
“We’re much better than we played tonight,” Kannady added. “That wasn’t my team out there.”
Wesleyan’s Lady Eagles erased an early 4-0 deficit Tuesday when a three-pointer by Kristen Dixon gave them a 5-4 edge after two minutes, 35 seconds.
Five lead changes later, OWU’s Malva Haltom scored off pass from Rebecca Schluter to put the home squad on top 14-11. Then another trey and a put-back by Dixon made it 19-11 at the first half’s 13-minute point.
Southwestern chiseled away at the Wesleyan margin, as the host Lady Eagles missed five of their next shots and turned the ball over three times. The visitors regained the lead, 22-21, with five minutes left in the initial half and took a 31-27 advantage into halftime.
The Wesleyan squad crept as close as one point twice in the second half: first after a three-point play by RaiAnna Dean and again, at 36-35, on free throws by Holly Smith at the 17-minute mark. Southwestern built a five- to eight-point cushion, then made it 11 (51-40) midway through the last half.
After the SWCU lead increased to 15, the Lady Eagles from Bartlesville scored eight straight over a 2 1/2-minute span to get back to within 57-50 with a little more than four minutes to go.
But OWU tallied no more points the remainder of the contest, missing its last five shots and turning the ball over twice.
For the game, Wesleyan hit 18 of 48 shots from the field compared to 24-for-58 shooting by Southwestern. From three-point range, the visiting Lady Eagles made six out of 12 attempts and OWU was four for 16.
Turnovers were nearly even, but the take-away margin usually favors Wesleyan’s women.
Southwestern out-rebounded the host Lady Eagles 38 to 35, with a nine-to-seven edge on the offensive glass.
Leading scorer for the game was 5-5 junior guard LaPorchea Sanders of Southwestern with 21. Also finishing in double figures for the visitors were Kaylee Davis (14) and Danyel Moses (10). Davis also grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.
Smith, who was celebrating her birthday Tuesday, tallied 11 points to lead the Lady Eagles. Dixon added 10 and Kayla Oleman had nine. Top rebounder for Wesleyan was Schluter with a dozen.
The Wesleyan women will return to the local hardwoods Friday when the Lady Eagles host York College of Nebraska.
York’s Lady Panthers are 6-12 following an 83-39 win Tuesday in their MCAC opener at McPherson, Kan., against Central Christian.
Tip-off Friday is set for 5:30 p.m. at OWU’s Mueller Center.
Southwestern 67,
Okla. Wesleyan 50
Halftime: SWCU 31, OWU 27
Southwestern Christian U. (5-11)
LaPorchea Sanders 21, Kaylee Davis 14, Danyel Moses 10, Allie McIntosh, Brandie Sandy 5, Sheirra Bruner 4, Brittani Shand 2, Natasha Flynn 2, Vivian Burns 2, Tia Morris 0, Destiny Redd 0, Bailey Wilkerson 0. Totals 24-59 13-23 67.
3ptFG: 6-12 (Davis 2, Sanders 2, Sandy 1, McIntosh, 1; Rebounds 38 (Davis 14, Sanders 5, McIntosh 4, Wilkerson 3).
Oklahoma Wesleyan U. (6-9)
Holly Smith 4-9, 2-3,11; Kristen Dixon 4-12, 0-2, 10; Kayla Oleman 4-9, 1-5, 9; Marva Haltom 3-6, 0-0 6; Rebecca Schluter 1-5, 4-7, 6; Brittany Minx 1-3, 1-2, 3; RaeAnna Dean 1-7, 1-1, 3; Shelby Lloyd 0-1; 2-2, 2; Allissa Lloyd 0-1 0-0, 0; Chantel Plummer 0-5, 0-0, 0. Total: 18-58 10-15 50.
3ptFG: 4-16 (Dixon 2, Smith 1, Minx 1). Rebounds 35 (Schluter 12, Oleman 4, Smith 4, Haltom 3, Dixon 3, S. Lloyd 3, Minx 1, A. Lloyd 1). Personal fouls: 17 (Oleman 3, Dixon 3, Plummer 3, Haltom 2, Schluter 2, Smith 2, Plummer 1, Dean 1). Assists: 10 (Haltom 2, Smith 2, Dixon 2, Dean 2, Schluter 1, Oleman 1). Turnovers: 17. Steals: 11 (Smith 3, Dean 3, Haltom 2, Schluter 1, Dixon 1, Plummer 1.