Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
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Southern Indiana
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Eastern Michigan Drops Road Decision at Southern Indiana
12/9/2023 4:05:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Denson leads Eagles with 13
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (emueagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team saw a 20-point showing from the bench, but fell 72-51 to the University of Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles on the road Saturday, Dec. 9.
The Eagles (1-7) had two players score in double figures, led by Cali Denson (Milwaukie, Ore./Milwaukie Academy of the Arts), who had 13 points. ZaNiya Nelson (Oklahoma City, Okla./Putnam City West) added 11 points and six rebounds and Kennedi Myles (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills/Illinois/Marquette) notched three points, nine rebounds and two steals.
Led by Nelson's three offensive rebounds, Eastern Michigan did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 10 boards that resulted in 14 second chance points.
The Eagles forced 15 Southern Indiana turnovers. The Green and White turned those takeaways into nine points on the other end of the floor. Myles' two steals led the way for EMU.
How It Happened
Eastern Michigan struggled out of the gate, falling behind 20-11 at the end of the first quarter.
The Eagles continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 37-19 halftime deficit.
Southern Indiana increased its lead after halftime, building a 52-23 advantage before Eastern Michigan went on an 8-0 run, punctuated by a three from Denson, to trim its deficit to 52-31 with 2:53 to go in the third. Southern Indiana countered and stretched its lead to 62-33 heading into the fourth. EMU knocked down two three-pointers in the quarter to score six of its 14 total points.
The Green and White narrowed its deficit to 71-45 before going on a 6-0 run, finished off by Denson's three, to shrink the deficit to 71-51 with 39 seconds to go in the contest. Southern Indiana responded and outscored the Eagles the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 72-51. Eastern Michigan fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 18 points.
Game Notes
» Denson was in the starting lineup for the seventh consecutive game after doing so for the first time in her career in the road game at Georgia Southern University, Nov. 11. Denson has been the only freshman this season to be in the starting five.
» Additionally, Denson led the Eagles with 13 points for her third double-digit performance and the third time leading in points. Her three triples in the game marked just the second time the freshman has recorded three or more made three-pointers in a single game. The last time the rookie did so was against North Dakota State University, Dec. 1, when she went 3-for-6 from beyond the arc.
» Lachelle Austin (Redford, Mich./Wayne Memorial) finished the game with two made field goals marking the 41st consecutive appearance in which the junior has registered a single make.
» In the starting five for the second time this season and the fourth time in her career was Kyndal Lewis (Belton, Mo./Belton).
» Olivia Smith (Fort Wayne, Ind./Southside) connected on one shot from beyond the arc in the loss to USI. It was the sixth contest this season in which Smith has made a single three-pointer. Last season, the then-rookie led the team in triples recording a single make in 25 total games. Her longest streak of consecutive games with a made triple was 13 (Dec. 17, 2022-Feb. 1, 2023).
» The Eagles held the Screaming Eagles to only 36.7 percent shooting from the field.
» The Eastern Michigan bench made an impact by adding 20 points to its scoring output.
» The Eastern Michigan defense forced 15 turnovers.
» Eastern Michigan cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 10 offensive boards in the game.
Up Next
The Green and White are slated to close out the 2023 year with one more away game, at IUPUI, Dec. 15, before returning home to host Saginaw Valley University, Dec. 29.
