Women's Basketball Uses Final Minute Run to Secure Road Victory Over CMU

Postgame Audio

MT PLEASANT, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Trailing by six with five minutes remaining in the contest, the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team rallied in the closing minutes to take a 93-86 victory in its final regular season game of the 2014-15 season over the Chippewas of Central Michigan University Saturday, March 7, at McGuirk Arena.

Sophomore Cha Sweeney (Toledo, Ohio-Rogers) became the 19th player all-time in EMU history to reach the 1,000-point club for Eastern women's basketball. The sophomore guard notched 20 points in the Eagles' win over Central to become the second-fastest player in school history to reach the grand total, needing just 61 games, as EMU's all-time leading scorer Tavelyn James (2008-12) was also a sophomore when she joined the elusive club in 57 career games.

As a team, Eastern shot 45.5 percent from the floor and an impressive 88.9 percent from the free throw line, going 24-for-27 in its victory over the Chippewas. Sophomore Janay Morton (Brooklyn Park, Minn.-Osseo) tied a career-best, dropping 34 points and going 13-for-13 from the charity stripe. Morton's 13 free throws rank fourth all-time in EMU laurels, while her free throw percentage ranks tied for 13th all-time in Eagle history. Sweeney and Morton combined 58 percent of the Green and White's offensive output with 54 points, while Jamaica Bucknor (Brooklyn, N.Y.-Weaver (ASA College)) and Brianna Puni (St. Charles, Mo.-Incarnate Word (Illinois State)) each netted nine points for Eastern.

Defensively, the Eagles swiped 15 balls and forced Central Michigan to commit 23 turnovers in the 40-minute contest, while EMU turned the ball over on just eight occasions. Furthermore, the Green and White converted 20 points off of CMU miscues. Sweeney and freshman Sasha Dailey (Toledo, Ohio-Rogers) powered the EMU defense with four steals apiece, while four players grabbed two steals apiece for Eastern.

The Chippewas offensive output was spread out evenly as they had four players notch double-digit scoring in the game. Lorreal Jones led all CMU players with 23 points, while Jas'Mine Bracey had 17 point and pulled down a team-high 18 rebounds, including nine offensive boards. Aleah Swary added 15 points to the Chippewa tally and both Kerby Tamm and Cassandra Breen scored 12 points for Central Michigan.

Eastern Michigan opened up the contest with a 10-2 run before the Chips silenced the EMU offense to take the 12-10 lead on a Breen three-pointer with 15:06 remaining in the opening half. The two teams battled for the lead, matching basket-for-basket for the next five minutes before EMU used small five-point run with scores on back-to-back trips down the floor to go up 26-21 on Central Michigan.

The Green and White maintained the slight advantage over CMU, until the 7:08 mark when the Chippewas took the second lead of the half, 30-29. However, the lead was short lived as Rachel Kehoe (St. Clair, Mich.-St. Clair (St. Clair County C.C.)) scored an easy layup under the basket off a pass from Sweeney and Sweeney knocked down a three-pointer in the next possession to put the Eagles up 34-32 with 6:27 left in the first half of action.

In the closing minutes of the opening half, fans saw four more ties between the two teams as they headed to their locker rooms at the end of the half, deadlocked at 44-44. Morton led the Eagles in the first half with 11 points, while Sweeney notched two three-pointers for six points for the Green and White. The Eastern defense forced CMU into 13 turnovers in the first half, which led to nine EMU points, and nine Eagle steals, including three from Dailey.

Eastern shot 42.1 percent from the floor in the first half and 50 percent from three-point land, going 5-for-10, while also going a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe.

Central Michigan saw two players notch double-digits in the first half as both Swary and Breen scored 12 points for the Chips. As a team, Central shot 58.3 percent from the floor, going 14-for-24 and draining eight three's in the opening 20 minutes.

The Chippewas opened up the second half going up as many as five on the Eagles, but a Morton steal and fastbreak layup quickly knotted the score at 51-51 with 17:07 remaining. Eastern Michigan took the lead back for the first time since the closing seconds of the first half when Morton again came up big for the Green and White with a trey to give EMU the 61-60 advantage over Central Michigan. A fastbreak layup from Sweeney off the dish from Bucknor extended the Eagle lead to three heading into the second media break of the second half with EMU leading 63-60.

Coming out of the break, Central Michigan tied the game for the 11th time with a Tamm three-pointer, but again Morton answered back just moments later with a three of her own to hand EMU the one-point advantage, 66-65, with 8:23 left in the contest.

Central Michigan made a move to pull away with the contest with 6:07 left when Amani Corley dropped a three-pointer before Swary made a triple to put the Chips up by six over the Green and White. A three-pointer from Sweeney heading into the final timeout of the half proved to be what the Eastern offense needed as they came out of the final break trailing by three.

Sweeney continued to be clutch for the Eagles, making a fastbreak jump shot and draining a three-pointer to put EMU up by two, 84-82, with 2:24 left to play. Following the trey, the Toledo, Ohio native grabbed a steal before she was sent to the line on a De'Jourie Tuner foul. The sophomore guard easily made both of her free throws to put the Eagles up by four, while a CMU turnover put the ball back into EMU's hands with just under two minutes to play. Jones brought Central Michigan within four of the Eagles but Sweeney quickly brought the lead back up to six with a layup and Phillis Webb (Brooklyn Park, Minn.-Osseo) extended it to seven, going 1-for-2 from the free throw line.

Central Michigan tried one final time to close the gap on the Eagle advantage when Bracey made both of her free throws, but the points would prove to be the final baskets of the contest for the Chippewas as EMU iced the CMU offense in the closing 30 seconds to earn a 93-86 victory in its final regular season contest.

The Green and White closed out the contest on a 21-8 run over Central Michigan, including 12 points from Sweeney in the final four minutes of play.

With the win, EMU locked up the No. 6 seed in the 2015 Mid-American Conference Tournament and will host the 11th-seeded Golden Flashes of Kent State University Monday, March 9. The contest will be the first leg of a doubleheader as the Eastern men's basketball team also secured a first-round home game in the conference tournament. Tip off for the women's game is slated for 5 p.m. from the Convocation Center.

Women's Basketball Uses Final Minute Run to Secure Road Victory Over CMU

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Team Stats

Janay Morton

Cha Sweeney

Brianna Puni

Jamaica Bucknor

Players Mentioned

Jamaica Bucknor

Sasha Dailey

Rachel Kehoe

Janay Morton

Brianna Puni

Cha Sweeney

Phillis Webb

Players Mentioned

Jamaica Bucknor

Sasha Dailey

Rachel Kehoe

Janay Morton

Brianna Puni

Cha Sweeney

Phillis Webb

Eastern Michigan Athletics