Thursday, January 30
Norfolk, Va. / Chartway Arena
5:30 p.m.
Southern Miss
11-8, 3-5
50
at
67
Old Dominion
17-3, 7-1
1
2
3
4
F
SOUTHERN MISS
21
9
8
12
50
OLD DOMINION
19
16
10
22
67
Lady Eagles Suffer Fourth-Straight Loss at ODU
1/30/2020 9:24:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Southern Miss showed grit throughout the ball game, but fell to the Monarchs on Thursday evening, 67-50.
NORFOLK, Va. – The Lady Eagles of Southern Miss women's basketball suffered their fourth-straight loss in the road game at Old Dominion, falling 67-50 to the Monarchs on Thursday evening in Chartway Arena.
The Lady Eagles (11-8, 3-5) had a lot going for them against the Monarchs (17-3, 7-1) but just couldn't pull out a win. It was ODU's sixth-straight win and their 12th-straight win at home. Southern Miss gave the starting nod to the same group of five for the 12th game in a row, featuring Shonte Hailes, Alarie Mayze, Daishai Almond, Respect Leaphart and Kelsey Jones.
Southern Miss came out of the gates roaring, putting up 13 points to the Monarchs' six during the first five minutes of the opening quarter. The Lady Eagles ended up leading the quarter overall at 21-19. ODU clawed their way back in the last three minutes of the frame, coming back from a 10-point deficit to make it within two. The second quarter saw the Lady Eagles score in single digits, only seeing nine points added to the board from their 23% shooting from the field. Southern Miss went into the half trailing to ODU, 35-30.
The third quarter had a little of the same action from the Lady Eagles, who struggled to get the ball to fall in their favor. They finished the frame with just eight points, but their hard-fought defense held the Monarchs to just 10 points and 25% shooting from the field. Southern Miss wiped the boards 10 times in the quarter, four of which came from Kelsey Jones, while Old Dominion finished with just five rebounds. In the final frame of the battle, the Lady Eagles fought their way back into the matchup. The Lady Eagles brought it within three at the nine minute mark of the quarter, and cut the lead back to just four a few more times. The game finished with a 15-2 ODU run in the final 4:21 of play, with 12 points coming from the foul line for the Monarchs, 11 of which came in the last 2:33. Leaphart, Mayze and Amber Landing all recorded four points in that final quarter, with Almond dishing out two assists.
"We've tried to preach it to our team over and over again: when an opportunity presents itself, you've got to be ready," said Head Coach Joye Lee-McNelis. "You never know when that is, and I tried to tell our girls on the bench that. We've gotten nothing from our bench in three games. I told them that some of them had an opportunity tonight and asked them, 'were you prepared for your opportunity?' We battled defensively. We battled and we fought hard, but the issue was the offensive end."
That defensive battle was definitely noted by Old Dominion. "I want to give Southern Miss a lot of credit," said Monarchs Head Coach Nikki McCray-Penson. "They gave us their best punch. I thought defensively they shut us down and owned us on the boards in a couple of the quarters."
Despite the team being put on ice in the second and third quarters, Alarie Mayze brought a spark to the Lady Eagles. The senior went 7-of-15 from the floor, had 14 points, had six boards alongside Almond and Jones and led the team in steals with three. She was on the floor for 38 of the 40 minutes of play.
Up Next
The Lady Eagles continue their road swing and travel next to Charlotte, N.C. to take on the 49ers on Saturday, Feb. 1 for a 4 p.m. ET matchup. It will be the seventh road game of the season for Southern Miss.
The Lady Eagles (11-8, 3-5) had a lot going for them against the Monarchs (17-3, 7-1) but just couldn't pull out a win. It was ODU's sixth-straight win and their 12th-straight win at home. Southern Miss gave the starting nod to the same group of five for the 12th game in a row, featuring Shonte Hailes, Alarie Mayze, Daishai Almond, Respect Leaphart and Kelsey Jones.
Southern Miss came out of the gates roaring, putting up 13 points to the Monarchs' six during the first five minutes of the opening quarter. The Lady Eagles ended up leading the quarter overall at 21-19. ODU clawed their way back in the last three minutes of the frame, coming back from a 10-point deficit to make it within two. The second quarter saw the Lady Eagles score in single digits, only seeing nine points added to the board from their 23% shooting from the field. Southern Miss went into the half trailing to ODU, 35-30.
The third quarter had a little of the same action from the Lady Eagles, who struggled to get the ball to fall in their favor. They finished the frame with just eight points, but their hard-fought defense held the Monarchs to just 10 points and 25% shooting from the field. Southern Miss wiped the boards 10 times in the quarter, four of which came from Kelsey Jones, while Old Dominion finished with just five rebounds. In the final frame of the battle, the Lady Eagles fought their way back into the matchup. The Lady Eagles brought it within three at the nine minute mark of the quarter, and cut the lead back to just four a few more times. The game finished with a 15-2 ODU run in the final 4:21 of play, with 12 points coming from the foul line for the Monarchs, 11 of which came in the last 2:33. Leaphart, Mayze and Amber Landing all recorded four points in that final quarter, with Almond dishing out two assists.
"We've tried to preach it to our team over and over again: when an opportunity presents itself, you've got to be ready," said Head Coach Joye Lee-McNelis. "You never know when that is, and I tried to tell our girls on the bench that. We've gotten nothing from our bench in three games. I told them that some of them had an opportunity tonight and asked them, 'were you prepared for your opportunity?' We battled defensively. We battled and we fought hard, but the issue was the offensive end."
That defensive battle was definitely noted by Old Dominion. "I want to give Southern Miss a lot of credit," said Monarchs Head Coach Nikki McCray-Penson. "They gave us their best punch. I thought defensively they shut us down and owned us on the boards in a couple of the quarters."
Despite the team being put on ice in the second and third quarters, Alarie Mayze brought a spark to the Lady Eagles. The senior went 7-of-15 from the floor, had 14 points, had six boards alongside Almond and Jones and led the team in steals with three. She was on the floor for 38 of the 40 minutes of play.
Up Next
The Lady Eagles continue their road swing and travel next to Charlotte, N.C. to take on the 49ers on Saturday, Feb. 1 for a 4 p.m. ET matchup. It will be the seventh road game of the season for Southern Miss.
Team Stats
USM
ODU
FG%
.339
.417
3FG%
.154
.538
FT%
.800
.667
RB
36
37
TO
15
15
STL
11
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
4
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Center
/ Women's Basketball
Center
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard/Forward
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