MONROE, La.?ULM ended the first half on a 35-6 run en route to a 68-55
victory over Alabama
State in the opening
round of the Taco Bell Classic. Junior
Lottie Moore led the Warhawks with 15 points, while sophomore Jessie Carrier
added 11, all of which came in the first half.
“I thought we played really well in the first half,” ULM head coach Mona
Martin said. “We played with a lot of
intensity. We stopped pressing in the
second half and allowed them to get back in the game.”
The Warhawks have now won 13 straight non-conference home games dating back to the 2005-06 season.
A three-pointer by ASU's Kimberly Davis tied the game at
10-10 with 14:11 remaining in the opening half, but from that point on it was
all ULM. The Warhawks (4-1) jumped out to a 16-10
lead before the Hornets (0-2) scored back-to-back layups pulling within a
basket.
ULM
then went on to score the next the 21 points jumping out to a 37-14 lead with
6:05 to play in the opening half. An Alabama State jumper interrupted the run, but the
Warhawks scored the final nine points of the half taking a 45-16 lead into the
break.
The staple of the Warhawks this season has been their
defense and this game proved to be no different. ULM forced 31 Alabama State turnovers, including 19 in the
first half, with 14 coming on Warhawk steals.
LaJeanna Howard led the way with four.
The Hornets tried their best to mirror ULM's first half performance opening the
second 20 minutes on a 6-0 run, but the Warhawks quickly shattered the mirror
with a 14-3 spurt stretching their lead to 59-25 with 13:30 remaining.
Erica Lumpkin had 15 points to lead Alabama State,
while Assunta Fulgham added 10. After
shooting just 30.4 percent in the opening half, the Hornets couldn't miss in
the second half connecting on 75.0 percent (12-of-16).
With the Warhawks emptying their bench midway through the
second half, Alabama
State ended the game on a 30-9 run closing what once
was a 34 point ULM
lead into the final 13 point margin.
The Warhawks will square off against Syracuse tomorrow afternoon in the Taco Bell Classic
championship game at 3:00 p.m. The Orange
defeated Eastern Kentucky 88-67 in today's
opening game behind a career-high 27 points from Chandrea Jones.
Eastern Kentucky and Alabama State
open play on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. fighting for third place.
