TROY, Ala. – Alayshia Hunter had a career-high 30 points on 14-of-17 shooting, but the Warhawks' attempt at a second dramatic win against Troy on the year was taken away late in a 74-64 Saturday afternoon loss in Trojan Arena.
The Warhawks (10-17, 4-14 SBC) trailed by 11 with 5:14 to play and by 10 at the 4:08 mark. Hunter and Daja Chase had back-to-back layups that made it a 63-57 contest with 2:35 left, ULM's closest deficit of the second half. Chelsea Tieuel, who had a career-high 25 points on Thursday, had a three-pointer rim out with 1:48 left that would have made it a 63-60 margin.
Troy upped its lead to 66-57 just 12 seconds later when Ashley Beverly Kelley knocked down a triple.
“It was a lot like most of our losses on the year, where we played really well for three quarters and had one bad that got us in a hole,” head coach Jeff Dow said. “Offensively, we did a great job to shoot 48 percent.”
ULM was down 61-50 with nine minutes left in the previous head-to-head contest (Jan. 21). The Warhawks' 27-14 fourth quarter advantage was the key in the 77-73 victory. Hunter had 14 of her 20 points in that final period as well.
Troy (15-12, 10-8 SBC), which entered the day as the nation's No. 6 scoring team (82.6 ppg) missed 9 of its first 10 shots. ULM led 12-2 in that span and forced the Trojans into its first called timeout.
“It was an outstanding effort on defense to hold Troy to 31 percent shooting,” Dow said. “They got us in offensive boards and that's what did us in.”
The Trojans outscored ULM 21-7 in the second quarter to take a 32-24 lead into the locker room. Hunter got her 11th points of the first half at the 7:41 mark that gave the Warhawks a 19-14 advantage, but a 14-3 Trojan run ensued.
ULM will get its last two regular season games at home, beginning with a Thursday 5:15 p.m. contest against Georgia Southern.
Inside (and beyond) the Box Score
-ULM's 48.1 percent showing from the floor was its second-best of the year (49.3 percent against Louisiana College on Opening Day).
-The team's top two shooting games within the league have both been against Troy (47.5 percent on Jan. 21).
-Alayshia Hunter had a career-high 30 points. The last Warhawk to reach that mark was Sharnice Brooks in the 2014-15 finale (33 points in OT win against Texas State).
-Hunter's 14 field goals were ULM's most since Ashleigh Simmons had 15 at Ole Miss (Nov. 26, 2013).
-Hunter moved into 15th on the school's all-time scoring list (1,073 points), surpassing Chrissa Hailey (1983-87). Her next target is Larrie Williams, who had 1,078 from 2008-11.
-Daja Chase's 17 points were a personal-best, as well as her seven makes (previous most was six against Troy on Jan. 21).
-Chelsea Tieuel had career-highs in assists (6) and minutes (39). Her previous best was four dishes against Troy (Jan. 21).
-Andreanna Jackson's 11 points were her second-most on the year. She also added nine on Thursday, making her 7-for-11 (3-for-5 behind the arc) in those two road contests.
