No. 6 Purdue Survives Lady Eagles, 65-53
12/1/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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No. 6 Purdue Survives Lady Eagles, 65-53
Shereka Wright led Purdue (5-0) in scoring with 19, shooting 5-for-8 from the field, 8-for-10 from the line, and collecting eight rebounds. Beth Jones finished with 13 points, and Mary Jo Noon added 12.
Dana Jones claimed high score for Southern Miss (2-2) with 11. La?Tasha Sumerall finished with 10, and Sonja Brown recorded seven points, 12 rebounds and four blocks.
?I am very proud of our kids,? said Southern Miss coach Rick Reeves. ?Purdue is averaging over 90 points a game, so for us to hold them to 65 is an achievement. I?m glad we were able to outrebound them (Lady Eagles won on the boards, 32-30), which was an area we wanted to focus on.
?They are sixth-ranked in the country for a reason and are expected to move up in the polls. They don?t beat themselves, and they are very well coached.?
Throughout the second half, Southern Miss kept within a tight stretch of Purdue, pulling within four points with three minutes remaining in the game. Jones hit two free throws to make the score, 54-50 with 3:02 on the clock.
Free throws also helped the Boilermakers as 11 of their final points were scored from the charity stripe. Purdue was 22-for-26 from the line in the second half, after a 4-for-6 production in the opening period. Overall they outshot the Lady Eagles from the line 26 to 13.
A Jessica Wood?s putback at the start of the second half tied the game at 26-26. Purdue then scored seven unanswered points and produced a 15-8 run during a seven-minute span, to lead 41-34 at 12:20.
Purdue led by 10, 49-39, at 8:06, when Noon connected on two free throws. Southern Miss pulled within five on three occasions late in the game, but the Boilermakers never relinquished control of the scoreboard.
?We have to give Southern Miss credit for hanging in there,? said Purdue coach Kristy Curry. ?They matched us well in the first half in energy and intensity. I?m glad we were aggressive in the second half and did well at the free throw line.?
Purdue led at halftime, 26-24. The Boilermakers? biggest lead was nine in the first half, when Erika Valek connected on a jumper at 6:41 and gave Purdue a 21-13 advantage.
Southern Miss opened the game fired up, playing solid defense and holding a 5-2 lead in the first four minutes. Beth Jones knotted the score with a three, 5-5, at 15:48, and gave Purdue its first lead of the game, 8-5, with a follow-up trey at 14:49.
Purdue held the lead for the remainder of the half, but a Sumerall jumper pulled the Lady Eagles within one, 22-23 at 4:10. Sumerall led Southern Miss with 10 points in the first half, with 4-of-7 shooting, 2-of-3 from three-point land. Beth Jones paced the Boilermakers with 9 points, 3-of-6 shooting overall and 2-of-3 behind the arch.
The Lady Eagles continue a five-game home span with Samford coming to Hattiesburg on Tuesday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m.