Lisch Scores 32 in Loss at Morehead State
Nov. 19, 2008 MOREHEAD, Ky. - Theresa Lisch scored a game-high 32 points, but Morehead State withstood a late Saint Louis rally and defeated the Billikens 98-86 Wednesday night at Johnson Arena. Lisch was just three points shy of the school record of 35 points she shares with Kate Hart and Kelly George. She was 10-of-21 from the floor, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc, and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line. Lisch added eight rebounds and a career-high eight assists. After Lisch scored the first basket of the game, Morehead State (2-1) tallied the next eight points. The Eagles built the lead to 15-8 before consecutive 3-pointers by Lisch, who scored 17 points in the opening period, and Janisha Gearlds brought the Billikens to within 17-14 with 11:34 left. Ashley Martin scored off her own offensive rebound, and Tiffanie Stephens followed with a 3-pointer to give the Eagles their largest lead of the half, 22-14, at the 10:57 mark. Saint Louis (1-2) went to work after that, assembling a 23-9 spurt in which six Billikens scored. Katie Paganelli's trey with 7:37 left pulled SLU even at 26, and two Lisch free throws with 6:00 remaining put the Bills ahead for the first time since the opening moments, 30-28. Gearlds beat the shot clock with a jumper, Lisch buried a trey and Alisha Goodwin netted a fast-break layup to finish the run and give Saint Louis its largest lead of the half, 37-31, with 3:47 to play. Morehead State then turned the tables, outscoring the Billikens 14-3 the rest of the half to claim a 45-40 lead at the break. Ashley Martin scored eight of her 14 first-half points during the run, including a pair of 3-pointers. Buckets by Heather King, Lisch and Paganelli kept the Bills within three points in the early moments of the second half. But Tiffany Hamilton and Chynna Bozeman registered eight and six points, respectively, in a 14-2 outburst that put Morehead State in command with a 63-48 cushion.
The Bills mounted a late rally and cut their deficit to five points, 88-83, when Paganelli sank two free throws with 2:04 remaining. But Stephens nailed a trey from the right baseline on MSU's next possession, and Saint Louis drew no closer than seven the rest of the way. Both teams were torrid from the foul line, with Morehead State shooting 81 percent (25-of-31) and Saint Louis converting 77 percent (24-of-31). The Eagles out-shot the Billikens 44 percent to 38 percent from the field and earned a 51-45 advantage on the boards. Paganelli, who was 9-of-9 from the foul line, finished with 18 points and six rebounds. Gearlds was 5-of-5 shooting, including two treys, and scored 14 points, while Goodwin tallied 11. Lauren Woods grabbed a career-high nine rebounds, and Kaelin Reid added six boards. Hamilton led six Eagles in double figures with 19 points and added seven rebounds and eight assists. Brittany Pittman collected game highs of 13 rebounds and seven blocks. The Billikens host Kansas Sunday at Chaifetz Arena. Game time is 4 p.m. |
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