Gabriella Cortez vs Arkansas State 2018
Avery Burrell
80
Winner ARKANSAS STATE ASU 15-14, 10-8
73
ULM ULM 4-25, 1-17
Winner
ARKANSAS STATE ASU
15-14, 10-8
80
Final
73
ULM ULM
4-25, 1-17
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
ARKANSAS STATE ASU 18 8 25 29 80
ULM ULM 18 21 12 22 73

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Cortez Scores 26 on Senior Day; ULM Falls to A-State, 80-73

Gabriella Cortez poured in a game-high 26 points and grabbed seven rebounds in her final home performance.

MONROE, La. – In her final performance at Fant-Ewing Coliseum, ULM senior Gabriella Cortez scored a game-high 26 points and pulled down a team-best seven rebounds, but it was her counterpart, Lauren Bradshaw, that scored 11 of her team-high 24 points in the fourth quarter that helped push Arkansas State to an 80-73 victory on Saturday afternoon (March 3).
 
Cortez capped off the game by hitting 6-of-21 from the floor, 4-of-13 from the beyond the arc and 10-of-11 at the free-throw line. That performance resulted in her 17th double-digit outing and 12th 20-point game of the season.
 
Arsula Clark, who wrapped up the contest by hitting 8-of-17 from the floor, finished with 18 points and five assists. Alexus Johnson came off the ULM bench to notch her first double-digit game of the season (12 points) by virtue of a 4-for-6 outing from 3-point range.
 
Johnson, along with Cortez and Destini Lunsford, who finished 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, helped ULM knock down 12-of-27 (44 percent) from 3-point range. The 12 treys are a season-high for ULM, which had hit 10 in games against Centenary (Nov. 10), Appalachian State (Jan. 6) and most recently South Alabama (Feb. 22).
 
ULM also collected 15 points from the free-throw line, hitting 15-of-16 (93.8 percent) on the afternoon, as it enjoyed its best performance at the charity stripe of the season in games which the Warhawks attempted at least 10 free throws.
 
Bradshaw singlehandedly scored the first five points of the third quarter as the Red Wolves pulled to within eight, 39-31, in less than a minute of action. Solid defense along with three points from the combination of Morgan Wallace and Madison Heckert allowed Arkansas State to trim the lead to five before Clark sliced past the defense for the first ULM points of the second half.
 
The 41-34 lead was erased by a 7-0 Arkansas State run that spanned 1:36 of the contest and included four points by Starr Taylor and two each from Wallace and Bradshaw. Lunsford forged ULM back in front with a critical 3-pointer from the right wing, but it was brief as Wallace followed with a trey from the top of the circle on the ensuing possession. Clark and Cortez scored three points each over the remainder of the half while LaTangellia Walker added two free throws to make for a 51-51 tie through three quarters of play.
 
Cortez gave ULM a 57-53 lead with a step-back 3 from the top of the circle just over a minute into the fourth quarter, but Starr and Bradshaw drew the Red Wolves even with a series of layups. Bradshaw and Wallace combined for eight of Arkansas State's next 10 points as the Red Wolves moved in front 67-57 with just under five minutes left. A layup by Clark and a 3-pointer off the hand of Johnson kept ULM within striking distance, 71-65, with 3:19 remaining.
 
Trailing by eight, following a pair of free throws by Bradshaw, Johnson converted a long-distance trey from the left wing to pull the Warhawks back within five, 73-68. But it was five free throws and a Bradshaw layup that proved to be the difference down the stretch as the Red Wolves completed the seven-point win.
 
Arkansas State finished strong by hitting 16-of-28 (57 percent) from the floor and 21-of-25 (84 percent) at the free-throw line in the second half. Bradshaw reached double figures by hitting 8-of-15 from the floor and 8-of-9 at the charity stripe. She was one of three Red Wolves in double figure scoring along with Wallace (20) and Taylor (12) in the contest.
 
Bradshaw and Wallace were also active on the glass for the Red Wolves, finishing with 11 rebounds as the tandem each recorded a double-double. They helped provide Arkansas State with a 40-22 edge in points in the paint and a 17-8 advantage in second-chance points.
 
"It didn't take long for our 13-point halftime lead to evaporate," ULM head coach Jeff Dow said. "We reminded the team that it was a great first half, but it's only a half. We guaranteed the players that the Arkansas State coach was lighting his team up at halftime and to expect a battle in the second half.
 
"We played well defensively in the first half and didn't allow Arkansas State to get a lot of shots at the rim, but things changed quickly in the third quarter. The third quarter has been a challenge for our team all season.
 
"In the second half, Arkansas State got easy basket after easy basket. We got killed in points off turnovers, 19-4, as our turnovers turned into layups for them on the other end in the second half. We also got pounded inside; got outscored in the paint, 40-22. We didn't apply enough pressure on the passer and our interior defense allowed too many deep touches. Against our zone, Arkansas State still found a way to get the ball inside. When you score 73 points on your home floor, that should be good enough to win the game.
 
"It's disappointing we didn't find a way to close out the game and gain some momentum heading into the (Sun Belt) tournament," Dow continued. "We have to play solid for 40 minutes, not just 20. For the first time in my short tenure here, we lost on Senior Day." 
 
Lunsford found an open Cortez, who knocked down a 3-pointer from the left corner at the 4:22 mark of the first quarter, to bring the Warhawks even at 10. The two teams would trade the lead four times over the next 2:29 of the contest before Cortez knocked down another 3-pointer from the left baseline and added a layup to extend the lead to 18-14. Arkansas State scored the final four points of the quarter to pull even at 18.
 
The back-and-forth battle for the lead continued in the early stages of the second quarter as the two teams reached a 22-all deadlock on a layup by Bradshaw. A series of 3-pointers from Whitney Goins and Johnson began a 17-2 run by the Warhawks that spanned the next 6:24 of the contest, resulting in a 39-24 lead. Two free throws by Wallace ended first half scoring as ULM took a 39-26 lead into the intermission.
 
The Warhawks will face No. 5 seed South Alabama in the first round of the Sun Belt Championship on Tuesday, March 6 at 2 p.m. in New Orleans.
 
 
 
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