MONROE, La. – After the ULM women's basketball battled back and forth with Little Rock for three quarters, the Trojans used a strong fourth quarter to pull away and pick up a 70-50 win over the Warhawks Thursday night at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
"We battled for three quarters," ULM head coach Brooks Donald Williams said. "We had spurts where we looked really good. Little Rock is extremely well coached and took advantage of our offensive scoring droughts and miscues."
The already short-handed Warhawks, who typically suit up just nine players, were down another player on Thursday night. Amber Thompson, the team's active leading scorer, missed the contest due to illness.
"Obviously we missed having Amber Thompson on the floor tonight," Williams said. "She's a scoring threat and generates opportunities for others. For three quarters, we handled her absence extremely well. For that, I am extremely proud of the eight that fought hard tonight. We will get back to work tomorrow and begin prep for Lafayette."
Neither team led by more than six points over the first three quarters. Little Rock took a 9-4 lead midway through the first quarter, but ULM battled back with four straight points from Maddi Gatte and Diamond Brooks to trail 9-8. Little Rock pushed the lead out to six at 16-10 before ULM scored four points on the final possession of the quarter. Jamie Means hit a layup and was fouled, but missed the free throw with eight seconds left in the frame. After a pair of offensive rebounds, Brooks knocked down a buzzer-beating jumper from the left elbow to bring ULM within two after a quarter at 16-14.
Gatte pulled the Warhawks back within one after making one-of-two free throws early in the second quarter. The Trojans responded, and pushed the lead to five at 21-16 on a layup by Kyra Collier with with 7:50 left before halftime. ULM answered again. Trailing 23-20, ULM went on a 6-0 run to take its first lead. Sheniqua Coatney knocked down a layup before Linda van Schaik worked into the paint and hit a jumper for the 24-23 advantage. Seconds later, van Schaik jumped a passing lane to grab a steal, and sent a bounce pass up the floor to Gara Beth Self for a layup, extending the lead to 26-23. ULM led by as much as four at 29-25 on a Whitney Goins 3-pointer, but Little Rock scored 10 of the final 12 points of the quarter, with the last six from Collier, to take a 35-31 lead at halftime.
In the second half, Gatte hit a pair of jumpers to tie the game at 35, and Brooks sunk a free throw to give ULM a brief 36-35 lead with 8:05 remaining in the quarter. ULM tied the game at 38 and again at 40 with 5:32 left in the quarter. However, the scoring pace slowed dramatically for ULM at that point. Little Rock scored 10 of the final 14 points in the quarter, capped on a traditional three-point play by Teal Battle, to take a 50-44 lead to the fourth quarter.
ULM continued to struggle offensively in the final frame. After two baskets from Self brought the Warhawks within four each time, ULM scored just two points over the final 8:59 of the game. Little Rock steadily pulled away down the stretch, with the final margin of 20 sitting as their largest lead of the game.
Self paced ULM with 14 points. Brooks added 11 points and seven rebounds. Kierra Crockett tallied 10 rebounds. The Warhawks shot 39.2% from the field and hit just 1-of-11 3-point attempts and 9-of-19 free throws (47.4%).
Battle led Little Rock with an 18 point, 11 rebound double double. Sydney Chastain poured in a career-high 17 points while Collier had 15 points and six assists. The Trojans shot 46.4% from the field and were efficient from 3-point range and the free throw line, connecting on 4-of-6 treys and 14-of-19 free throws (73.7%).
The Warhawks head to Lafayette for a 2 p.m. tip-off Saturday against the rival Ragin' Cajuns. Links to live video, audio and stats are available at ULMWarhawks.com.
