Golden Eagles get back on the winning side, rout Little Rock
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Mired in their losing streak, the Tennessee Tech women’s basketball coaches saw Saturday’s game as a chance to shake things up to try to revitalize the lineup. Oh, boy, did it pay off.
By Thomas Corhern, TTU Athletics Media Relations
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Mired in their losing streak, the Tennessee Tech women's basketball coaches saw Saturday's game as a chance to shake things up to try to revitalize the lineup.
Oh, boy, did it pay off.
Amaya Thomas collected her first double-double with the Golden Eagles as she finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds on 5-for-10 shooting, including a pair of 3-pointers and a 2-for-2 day at the line, while also collecting a steal, to help lead Tech to a decisive 72-47 victory over Little Rock.
The win snaps a seven-game losing streak and keeps the Golden Eagles from going 0-for-January as Tech improves to 11-9 overall and 4-7 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
Chloe Larry led all scorers with 17 points, two rebounds, five assists and two steals, while Reagan Hurst had 12 points and LaReesha Cawthorn with 10 points and 10 boards for her fifth double-double of her freshman campaign.
Little Rock (10-11, 6-5 OVC) did not have a double-digit scorer in the game as Jordan Holman was held to eight points – well short of her season average of 17.2. Destinee Salgado also had eight points, while Mya Cotto and Taelor Coxford each had seven.
The biggest number on the scoresheet came on the rebounding side as the Golden Eagles dominated the glass, pulling down 53 rebounds to Little Rock's 34. While both teams had nine second-chance points, the rebounding effort kept the Trojans off the board.
In a reverse of the January 1 meeting, it was Tech that led in paint points, scoring 32 inside to Little Rock's 14. The Trojans led that 40-12 in the earlier meeting at Jack Stephens Arena. The Golden Eagles were also able to tamper down their turnovers, losing 13 in all after seeing nine go away in the first half.
In a moment of defense leading to offense, the Golden Eagles stepped up and held Little Rock to 18.8-percent shooting in both the second and third quarters – holding the Trojans scoreless for over eight consecutive minutes in that span. The Golden Eagles turned that into a 14-0 run, outscoring the visitors 16-8 in the second and 20-9 in the third.
Tech then scored 27 points in the fourth quarter to seal the deal on the contest, hitting 63.3 percent from the field and 85.7 at the line in the final 10 minutes, climbing the Golden Eagle advantage to its peak at 25 with eight seconds to go.
As the second half of the OVC race dawns, the Golden Eagles will look to keep it going on Monday as they travel to Tennessee State at 5 PM to make up the postponed game earlier in the week.
Following Monday's game, Tech will return home to the Hooper Eblen Center next week as it hosts Western Illinois on Thursday and Eastern Illinois on Saturday.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
