Timely Scoring Leads Ladyjacks Past Pesky Cardinals at Home, 60-49

Saturday, January 13

Nacogdoches, Texas

3:30 p.m.

Stephen F. Austin

13-3 (5-0SLC)

Incarnate Word

3-13 (2-3SLC)

Incarnate Word

Stephen F. Austin

Timely Scoring Leads Ladyjacks Past Pesky Cardinals at Home, 60-49

1/13/2018 6:11:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

SFA forces 28 turnovers and holds UIW to 49 points to improve to 5-0 in Southland play

By: Kevin Meyer | Assistant Director of Athletic Media Relations

NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Timely baskets and a strong defensive effort led the Stephen F. Austin women's basketball team to a win in a gritty affair on Saturday, 60-49. Not much went according to plan for the Ladyjacks (13-3, 5-0 SLC), who were unable to exploit the matchup with a pesky UIW squad (3-13, 2-3 SLC), who gave them all they could handle for four quarters at William R. Johnson Coliseum. SFA's defense came through in crunch time, however, holding the Cardinals scoreless for the final 1:13 of play and forcing turnovers on the final two Cardinal possessions to seal the win.

Taylor Jackson led the way with 20 points, six steals and five rebounds, while Stevi Parker and Chanell Hayes each chipped in 10 points apiece.

The first quarter began as a thing of beauty for the Ladyjacks, who held the Cardinals scoreless for the opening four minutes of play while connecting on their first four shots to go up 11-0 in the early going. UIW would struggle altogether in the first half, managing just five points on 1-15 shooting from the field (1-7 3-Pt.). In holding UIW to just five points in the opening stanza, SFA tied a season-best for fewest points allowed in the quarter, set against Central Christian College on December 19^th. Even as the Ladyjacks cooled off to end the first quarter, they would still own an 18-5 lead over the visiting Cardinals after the opening quarter of play.

After a nearly ideal start to the game in the opening frame, SFA's tight grip on the game began to unravel in the second quarter, as the previously hapless UIW shooting began to heat up to the tune of 6-13 shooting in the second quarter. The 'Jacks struggled to convert baskets of their own in the quarter, and would be outscored by UIW 13-10 in the second and see the lead dwindle to just 28-18 at the halftime break.

In the opening minutes of the third quarter, a pair of three-point baskets by Taylor Jackson would keeps the Cardinals at bay momentarily, but five quick points in a row for UIW cut the lead to just 34-29 at the media timeout with 4:53 remaining in the third. Stringing together a few baskets, the Ladyjacks got the lead back out to ten at 41-31 briefly, but a UIW layup cut the margin to 41-33 entering the final quarter of play.

Sensing a chance at a possible upset, the Cardinals opened the fourth quarter with a layup to trim the lead to just six points,. Unfazed, the Ladyjacks responded with one of Jackson's five threes and a jumper by Parker to gain some breathing room. The Cardinals would refuse to go away, however, and cut the lead to just three, 48-45, with 3:34 remaining off a layup by reigning Southland Conference Freshman of the Year Imani Robinson. After a scoreless two minute stretch by both teams, the 'Jacks got a much needed basket from Jackson, who drove the length of the floor and pulled up for a six-foot jumper to make the score 50-45. After Robinson split a pair of free throws, SFA's Imani Johnson would make a pair at the foul stripe to make it a six-point game at 52-46. Unrelenting, the Cardinals halved that lead with a three-pointer that hit the front rim, bounced straight up in the air and fell, forcing an SFA timeout.

The Ladyjacks made the remaining 1:13 left of game time count after the timeout, holding the Cardinals without a point of any sort while adding five of their own off a trio of Jackson FT's and a Hayes layup at the buzzer, a punctuation mark on an effort that was close but unsuccessful for the visiting Cardinals.

The nation's top free-throw shooting team in the country heading into the contest, SFA wasn't able to rely on the free throw line in Saturday's contest, as the 'Jacks went to the line just 11 times, making nine of the attempts for an 81.8 percent mark. Indeed it was the defense of the 'Jacks that provided opportunities when nothing else did, as the 'Jacks held the Cardinals to just 33.9 percent shooting, 49 points and forced 28 turnovers.

Giving up a 47-36 edge in rebounding on the night, including a 21-16 edge in offensive boards, the Ladyjacks also lost out slightly in points in the paint (32-28). SFA held advantages in points off turnovers (26-19) and second chance points (14-9) in the contest.

Next up for SFA is a home matchup with fellow undefeated and Southland leader Abilene Christian, a huge matchup that will break the three-way tie atop the league standings with the two teams and Central Arkansas.

-SFA-