MONROE, La --- Ashley Wallis and Lottie Moore
helped deflect a second half comeback by South Alabama to help the ULM women's
basketball team earn a 67-58 Sun Belt Conference victory inside Fant-Ewing
Coliseum on Wednesday night.
Moore scored a game- and season-high 21
points along with seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks to lead the
Warhawks (10-5, 3-1 Sun Belt). Wallis provided the second scoring punch for ULM
with a career-high 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting including 5-of-5 from the free
throw line.
Jesse Carrier was clutch at the line as she
knocked down 8-of-8 free throws over the final 2:16 to help the Warhawks
preserve the victory. She added 11 points and four rebounds on the night.
“Jesse hit some key free throws in the end
and we had a major team effort,” ULM head coach Mona Martin said.
The Warhawks led by as many as 16 points in
the second half before the Jaguars made it interesting with a 13-3 run over a
four minute period to cut the ULM lead to one with 4:03 on the clock.
The Warhawks answered by locking down on
defense and forcing the Jaguars into 0-for-4 shooting from the field in the
final minutes to push their lead back to nine points with 34 seconds remaining.
“When
we got a little rattled in the second half, Lottie took over the game,” Martin
said. “That is what we want our senior to do. I was proud of her tonight. Ashley
played well for us also as she is recovering from a knee injury. She continues
to improve day in and day out.”
South Alabama (11-5, 2-3 Sun Belt) was ice
cold from the field as they shot 29 percent (20-for-69) on the night, but found
a way to fight back in the second half behind Jessica Starling's team-high 18
points.
After trading baskets in the game's first
eight minutes, Sumar Leslie's 3-pointer capped a 13-2 ULM run midway through
the first half to give the Warhawks a 29-15 lead with 2:47 remaining.
ULM took a 33-22 lead into halftime thanks to
11 first half points from Moore. Both teams combined to shoot 20-for-64 (31.3
percent) from the field in the opening period.
Sannisha Williams grabbed a game-high 13
rebounds for the Warhawks.
“We were focused tonight,” Martin said. “We
kept our composure and I am proud of the way we played tonight.”
The Warhawks continue conference play with a matchup
on Sunday at 4 p.m. CST against Denver inside Magness Arena in Denver, Colo.
