MONROE, La. – Amber Thompson poured in a career-high 21 points, while Diamond Brooks added a career-high 14 points and Kierra Crockett tallied her first double-double as the ULM women's basketball team topped Mississippi Valley State, 74-66, Sunday afternoon at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
The win snapped a six-game losing streak for ULM (2-9) in the final non-conference game of the season.
"It was big," ULM head coach Brooks Donald Williams said. "It was a huge team win. We needed it. It's a great win going into conference play."
In the first game since losing senior point guard Lauren Fitch indefinitely to an apparent leg injury at Texas Tech, the Warhawks needed to find a way to replace their leading scorer and distributor. Fellow senior Thompson rose to the occasion, scoring a career-high 21 points along with eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.
"I thought Amber really stepped up," Williams said. "She stepped up when we needed her offensively and defensively. I thought she was strong with the ball at the end of the game and really did some good things in press offense and demanded the basketball. We need her to do that, and we need her to do it more. We were really proud of her efforts tonight."
With the game tied at five in the first quarter, MVSU (1-10) went on a 7-0 run to take a 12-5 lead. ULM answered with 11 of the next 13 points, including the final seven points of the first quarter. Thompson finished a 3-point play to give the Warhawks the 16-14 lead after a quarter.
ULM scored the first five points of the second quarter to extend its lead to seven at 21-14. MVSU closed within one twice before Sheniqua Coatney knocked down back-to-back layups to extend the ULM lead to 27-22. MVSU answered again, as Erin Smith drained a 3-pointer late in the half to bring the Devilettes within one at halftime 30-29.
In the third quarter, MVSU took a brief 31-30 lead to open the half, but Thompson responded for ULM to give the lead back to the Warhawks. The game was tied at 35, and ULM led 40-39 before the Warhawks went on a 9-1 run to extend its lead to 49-40. ULM led 54-47 after three quarters.
ULM looked to pull away down the stretch. Thompson knocked down a layup and Diamond Brooks followed with a layup of her own off an assist from Gara Beth Self to give the Warhawks their first double-digit lead at 58-47 with 8:36 remaining. Moments later, Self finished a 3-point play to give ULM its largest lead of the day at 12, 63-51, with 6:53 to play.
Self knocked down a jumper with 4:20 left to give the Warhawks a 66-55 edge before ULM did not score for over three-and-a-half minutes. MVSU cut the deficit to 66-62 before Thompson, Self and Brooks knocked down free throws over the final 40 seconds to preserve the victory.
Warhawk post players thrived on Sunday. Brooks tallied 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Crockett posted her first double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds on 4-of-6 shooting. Coatney added eight points and nine rebounds and was 4-of-4 from the field.
"I thought it was an all-around team effort for their success," Williams said. "I thought the guards did a great job of getting them the ball. I thought the posts did a great job of doing their work away from the ball. And then, of course, they finished to be able to have production. I thought it was a great team effort."
Self made her sixth start of the season, but her first as the point guard. While she struggled from the field, Self made other key contributions, scoring six points to go along with a team-best five assists while committing just three turnovers. Williams said Self handled the role well.
"I thought she played with a lot of poise," Williams said. "I thought she embraced the new role, embraced her position. I hate calling it new, because it's a position she's played for most of her life. I thought she really embraced it and took it on with a lot of confidence and did the best that she could for her team."
Shelli Thigpen led five MVSU players in double figures with 15 points.
ULM shot 47.1% (24-of-51) from the field, 16.7% (2-of-12) from 3-point range and 61.5% (24-of-39) from the free throw line. The Warhawks had 41 rebounds, 13 assists, two blocks, six steals and 17 turnovers. MVSU shot 31.3% (21-of-67) from the floor, 28.0% (7-of-28) from the 3-point arc and 60.7% (17-of-28) from the free throw line. The Devilettes had 37 rebounds, 11 assists, no blocks, six steals and 13 turnovers.
The Warhawks open Sun Belt Conference play at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Georgia Southern. Links to live video, audio and stats are available at ULMWarhawks.com.
