The IUS women’s basketball team defeated the Asbury College Eagles on Saturday, Jan. 23, 77-54 in the Activities Building.
The win pushes the Grenadiers’ record to 14-7 overall and is the fifth in a row for the IUS women, who remain undefeated in conference play, with a 7-0 record in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
The loss was the third straight for Asbury, dropping their record to 7-10 overall and 1-3 in the KIAC.
Ashmere Woods, IUS freshman guard, led all scorers with 18 points and tied Lakin Griffith, Asbury freshman forward, with a game-high nine rebounds.
Whitney Duncan, IUS junior guard, led the Grenadiers with six assists, while Alden Krausse, IUS junior forward, had a game-high four blocks.
“We need to push the ball in transition, and get some easy baskets,” Bernie Merkel, IUS assistant coach, said.
His players did just that in the first half. The Grena diers went on a 7-0 run during the first four minutes of the game.
“We have been playing good defense lately, and we need to keep that up,” Merkel said.”
IU Southeast forced 20 turnovers by the Eagles, while turning the ball over only 13 times. They also held Asbury to just over 34 percent shooting from the field.
With 16:10 remaining in the first half, Asbury hit a 3-pointer, giving them their first points of the game. It would be another 4:40 before the Eagles scored again.
The Grenadiers responded with a layup by Duncan, who has been named the KIAC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week three times this season.
Minutes later, Woods assisted Jasmine Cain, IUS freshman guard, on another easy layup, giving the Grenadiers a 13-3 lead with 12:45 left in the first half.
A pair of blocks in one possession by Krausse seemed like they would build the Grenadiers momentum even more, but the Eagles responded
A reverse layup for Asbury ended their scoring drought and started what would eventually become a 3:30, 11-0 run by the Eagles, giving them a 14-13 advantage with eight minutes left in the first half.
An assist from Brianna Miles, IUS sophomore guard, to Woods for a layup gave the Grenadiers a 17-16 lead with 6:10 left and they would never again trail.
The halftime score was 31-23, in favor of IU Southeast.
Asbury started the second half with the ball and scored immediately, looking to regain momentum.
A pair of IUS free throws and an Asbury jump shot made the score 33-27, in favor of the Grenadiers.
At the 17:05 mark, Murphy grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed 3-pointer and made a layup. She stole the ensuing inbounds pass, setting up another possession for IU Southeast, resulting in a 3-pointer by Krausse.
Asbury answered with a 3-pointer of their own, but on the Grenadiers’ next possession, Murphy dished out another assist on a 3-pointer, this time Tia Wineinger, junior forward, knocked down the shot.
Moments later the Grenadiers were pushing the ball on a two-on-one fast break, and Duncan dished a no-look pass to Woods, who finished with a layup, giving the Grenadiers a 45-33 lead with 15 minutes remaining.
Asbury pulled to within 10 points after hitting one of two free throws to make the score 47-37, but this was as close as it would be the rest of the game.
Defense was the key factor in the Grenadiers’ victory. Asbury had been averaging 70.9 points per game coming into the contest. The Grenadiers also held Asbury’s leading scorer well below her season average. Courtney Albin, Asbury sophomore guard, had a 13.9 points per-game average, but was held to just three points in the game.
By DERRICK HOLDRIDGE
Staff Writer
dvholdri@umail.iu.edu