Three-Point Barrage Leads Ladyjacks Past Wildcats on Road, 78-52

Wednesday, February 28

Abilene, Texas

7:00 p.m.

Stephen F. Austin

23-5 (15-2SLC)

Abilene Christian

15-12 (9-8SLC)

Stephen F. Austin

Abilene Christian

Three-Point Barrage Leads Ladyjacks Past Wildcats on Road, 78-52

2/28/2018 10:20:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

SFA rolls behind season-high 10 first half three-pointers

By: Kevin Meyer | Assistant Director of Athletic Media Relations

ABILENE, Texas -- Live by the three. Die by the three.

The old basketball adage has long been used to describe a team's reliance on three-point shooting, but on Wednesday night, the 'Jacks were living large inside Moody Coliseum in Abilene, Texas, torching the nets with 12 trifectas and running away from Abilene Christian, 78-52. The win improved SFA to 23-5 on the season, 15-2 in Southland Conference play, and 7-4 in road games this season.

A total of five Ladyjacks hit a three-pointer, with four connecting on more than one trifecta. Freshman Marissa Banfield had a career night with 17 points on 4-6 shooting from deep, while the Southland Conference's top three-point marksman Lovisa Brunnberg also notched a season-best with 15 points on 3-4 shooting from the arc. Imani Johnson (12 points) and Taylor Jackson (10 points) also chipped in double-digit performances for the 'Jacks.

"It was a really good win, especially coming after the Lamar game, we really just tried to get our team refocused," said SFA head coach Mark Kellogg. "Our practices were great the past two days, shoot around today was as good as its been all season, so I couldn't have asked for more from the preparation side, the attention to detail, some of the things that maybe we had let slide while we were winning games. I'm really proud of them, and the game went about as well as it could. I loved that we shared the ball, had 17 assists to nine turnovers, and to have everyone score in a road win is a really good thing."

While rain persisted outside throughout the day, a veritable downpour of three-pointers inside Moody Coliseum, including a season-high 10 first half three-pointers, helped SFA take control of the game for good halfway through the first quarter, as they led nearly wire-to-wire in the contest. Shaking off a slow start in which they shot just 2-8 from the field, the 'Jacks started to work the ball out to the perimeter and the shots started to fall in short order. A pair of Brunnberg threes on ensuing possessions boosted the 'Jacks out to a 13-8 lead with two minutes left to play, a lead the Ladyjacks would never relinquish in the contest. SFA would lead 17-11 at the end of the first quarter.

SFA's onslaught from deep reached a new level of lethality in the second frame, as a 6-9 performance from beyond the arc did most of the heavy lifting in a quarter in which SFA outscored the home side 26-13. After the two teams traded buckets for the opening half of the second quarter, SFA got back-to-back three-pointers from Brioenne Burns and Lovisa Brunnberg to get the lead into double digits at 33-20 with less than five minutes to go. Later, Johnson would knock down a trey and a pair of free throws in quick succession to blossom the lead out to 21 points at 43-22 to enter the halftime break. After going through most of the season with a game-high of 10 made threes, the "Jacks would end the first half with 10 makes on 18 attempts, and would lead 43-24.

"We just tried to work through the paint as much as we could," said Kellogg. "They played a lot of zone early, and for a while there in the first we didn't have much rhythm, but then I thought we settled in, moved the ball around, got some paint touches and that really opens up the three."

After flexing their outside shooting in the first half, the 'Jacks changed strategies in the third quarter, attacking the Wildcats down low to the tune of six paint points and a 5-9 performance at the charity stripe. SFA would also force six ACU turnovers in the stanza and hold the Wildcats to 4-13 shooting from the field on the way to a 15-11 scoring advantage. After the 'Jacks forced a turnover following a Parker jumper, they would run down the clock before closing out the third quarter with a baseline jumper by Banfield.

In the fourth quarter, both teams scored with relative ease, as the Wildcats put forth their best scoring quarter with 17 points. SFA, meanwhile, scored from everywhere, hitting 5-10 shots in the quarter, including two more three-pointers, and went a perfect 8-8 from the foul stripe to post 20 points in the final stanza. With the game well in hand and the 'Jacks extending the lead out to a game-high 27 points with over six minutes left to play, the 'Jacks were able to rotate players out and give everyone some court time.

By the time the final whistle blew, the 'Jacks had placed four in double-figures, and all eleven Ladyjacks had played and scored in the contest. Despite being out-rebounded 38-28, SFA led for 35 minutes of the contest and finished the game shooting 46.3 percent (25-54) from the field and 12-27 (44.4 percent) from beyond the arc. The Ladyjacks held the ACU offense in check, as they shot just 6-30 (20 percent) from beyond the arc and committed 22 turnovers, which the 'Jacks turned into 21 points. SFA's bench scoring was also a huge boon in the victory, as the Ladyjacks reserves outscored their counterpart 43-22 on the evening.

"It was huge to get those bench contributions," continued Kellogg. "We know the group off the bench for us can shoot, they can contribute, and it was great to see how they got going beyond the arc. The way they played allowed us to keep other players rested and fresh ahead of our game on Saturday. It was a feel good win tonight, it went about as well as we could've wished for. We get some momentum back ahead of a rivalry game with Sam Houston State on Saturday and then of course the conference tournament after that."

SFA will close out the regular season with a final road contest at Sam Houston State on Saturday. Mathematically eliminated from Southland Tournament play, the Bearkats will be playing in their final contest of the 2017-18 campaign.

-SFA-