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Eastern Michigan Comes Back to Upend IUPUI in Overtime
12/15/2023 9:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Eagles erase separate 18-point, 13-point deficits
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team erased an 18-point first-quarter deficit and a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit en route to taking down Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis, 84-74, in overtime on the road Friday, Dec. 15.
The Eagles (2-7) trailed 27-9 with 35 seconds left in the first quarter but rallied to tie the game at 42-42 four minutes into the second half. EMU also trailed by 66-53 with 6:16 in the game before taking a 67-66 lead with 1:02 left.
EMU had five players score in double figures, led by Tayra Eke (Madrid, Spain/IES Ortega y Gasset/LIU), who scored a season-high 18 points. ZaNiya Nelson (Oklahoma City, Okla./Putnam City West) added 12 points while Olivia Smith (Fort Wayne, Ind./Southside) added 11 points. Ashley Hassett (Hershey, Neb./Hershey/Northeast C.C) scored a career-high 10 points and Kennedi Myles (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills/Illinois/Marquette) had a season-high 11 points to round out the double-digit scorers.
How It Happened
Eastern Michigan struggled out of the gate, falling behind 27-10 at the end of the first quarter.
Eastern Michigan then cut the Jaguars lead to 32-16 before going on a 7-0 run, highlighted by a bucket from Myles, to narrow its deficit to 32-23. The Eagles continued to chip away, reducing the IUPUI lead to 40-32 heading into the break.
After intermission, Eastern Michigan cut its deficit to 42-35 before going on a 7-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Eke, to tie things up at 42 with 6:05 to go in the third. The Eagles could not advance their rally further as the Jaguars took a 56-49 lead into the fourth quarter. Eastern Michigan knocked down three three-pointers in the quarter to score nine of its 17 total points.
IUPUI kept widening its lead in the fourth, constructing a 66-53 advantage before Eastern Michigan went on a 14-0 run, finished off by Kyndal Lewis' (Belton, Mo./Belton) layup, to seize a 67-66 lead with 1:03 to go in the fourth. The Jaguars then fought back to even things up at 71-71 and send the game to overtime. Eastern Michigan took advantage of its opportunities in the post, scoring 18 of its 22 points in the paint.
Eastern Michigan started overtime with a bang, going on an 8-0 run, finished off by Myles' jumper, to seize a 79-71 lead with 2:06 to go in the period. The Eagles kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 84-74 win.
Game Notes
» Interim Head Coach Ke'Sha Blanton recorded her first career win in her first game as Interim Head Coach.
» The game was the Eagles' first overtime game since Jan. 28, 2023, against the University of Toledo.
» The Eagles recorded their first overtime win since Jan. 21, 2023, against Northern Illinois University.
» EMU's double-digit overtime victory was the first of its kind since beating Central Michigan University by 15 points in overtime, Mar. 8, 2014. Friday's game marks the first time Eastern was won by 10-plus points in overtime on the road in program history.
» EMU had five players in double-digits for the first time since Jan. 8, 2022, against Central Michigan.
» Eke's 18 points were a season-high, topping her 14-point output against SIUE, Nov. 18. She was 9-for-12 from the floor with her nine made field goals being a career high.
» All 11 Eagles that played scored with nine having scored in the first 15 minutes of the game. EMU had 10 players score at the University of Michigan, Nov. 24.
» Hassett scored a career-high 10 points, making her first career three-pointers in the second quarter with a pair of triples. Hassett also played a career-high 16 minutes and recorded a career-high five rebounds.
» Myles hauled in a season-high 16 rebounds, which was four short of her career-high 20 rebounds set against University of Evansville, Dec. 15, 2019. Her 16 rebounds doubled that of any other player in the game. Myles also had a game-high three steals, one shy of her season-high four steals set against the University of Detroit Mercy, Nov. 6.
» Myles had 11 points and 16 rebounds, marking her 12th career double-double and second of the season. Myles also had a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds against SIUE, Nov. 18. She is the third different Eagle with a double-double this season as Eke also had a double-double against SIUE, Nov. 18, and Nelson posted a double-double at North Dakota State, Dec. 1.
» Smith drilled a game-high three three-pointers and has made at least one triple in seven games this season.
» EMU forced 26 turnovers, the most by an Eagles' foe since they forced 29 turnovers at Central Michigan, Feb. 4, 2023.
» Eastern outrebounded IUPUI, 49-40. The Eagles' 49 rebounds are their most since tallying 52 against Grace Christian University, Nov. 18, 2021.
» The Eastern Michigan defense held IUPUI to just 1-of-8 shooting in overtime.
Up Next
The Green and White are slated to close out the 2023 year by hosting Saginaw Valley State University, Dec. 29, at 1 p.m.
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