ATLANTA, Ga. - Middle Tennessee improved to 3-3 with a 64-49 victory over Georgia State (0-2) Thursday in GSU Arena. "Evening up our record to 3-3 is huge for this basketball team because it gives us confidence," said Head Coach Stephany Smith. "It is also nice to get a road win."
Middle Tennessee pounded the boards in the first half as the team had 20 rebounds at the break, with 13 being on the defensive side. The strong defensive presence assisted the Lady Raiders in building a 15-point lead at the half. It would prove advantageous down the stretch.
The Lady Raiders came out strong in the second half with three buckets by sophomore Krystle Horton and went on a 6-2 run in the first three minutes. Georgia Southern pounded the defensive boards as Middle Tennessee struggled to find the bucket.
After Starr Orr hit a lay-up with 8:14 left to play, Middle Tennessee hit a scoring slump of almost seven minutes without a bucket. Georgia Southern couldn't capitalize thanks to the Lady Raider defensive pressure and could only score six points to trim the Middle Tennessee lead to 15 (60-45) with under two minutes to play.
Senior Patrice Holmes hit her fourth three-pointer of the night to end the Middle Tennessee scoring drought with 1:50 left to play. Fellow senior Ditte Jakobsen closed out the game for the Lady Raiders when she hit the second of two free-throws with 34 seconds left to play.
Overall Middle Tennessee shot 45.3 percent from the field and added 32 rebounds, with 24 from the defensive side. The Lady Raiders also enjoyed a good night at the charity stripe hitting 12-of-19 for 63.2 percent.
The Lady Raiders also saw the return of Ciara Gray to the court. The senior, who had announced she was returning to the squad earlier in the week, played 13 minutes, snagged one rebound, had one assist and drew one charge.
Horton, who had 19 points to lead Middle Tennessee, also added four rebounds and two assists, while fellow backcourt player Tia Stovall recorded 13 points. Holmes ended the night with 18 points and also had seven rebounds.
"It is important for Tia and Krystle to have big games on the same night," Smith said. "We have been waiting for that, although we are still giving up too many turnovers."
Middle Tennessee continues its road swing through Georgia as the Lady Raiders face Georgia Southern on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.
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