RODERIC LLOYD
Staff Reporter | rsl010@latech.edu
Kierra Anthony, Junior, Guard, jogs thee ball to the LA Tech half of the court
The Lady Techsters used a strong 14-2 fourth quarter run to pull away from preseason C-USA favorite Middle Tennessee en route to a 66-49 win.
Junior Kierra Anthony led all scorers with 20 points, in what was a tightly contested game throughout while Junior Taylor Stahly added 17 points.
The win was the first by Tech (14-8, 5-4 C-USA) over Middle Tennessee (13-9, 5-4 C-USA) since the Lady Techsters joined C-USA, snapping a six-game losing streak to the Blue Raiders, as they suffered only their third home loss of the season.
Anthony played a vital role in pacing the Lady Techsters’ attack during the contest, often turning defense into easy transition buckets on offense.
“She has been playing really well on the defensive end of the floor,” Tech head coach Brooke Stoehr said. “Middle Tennessee is so good in the half court. I knew we would have a hard time getting open and struggle to get easy shots. We needed our defense to generate some points for us.”
Stoehr added that Anthony did a really good job of playing the passing lanes and getting her hands on the ball, which was highlighted by her four rebounds and two steals.
Tech entered the final period with a 36-34 lead, where Anthony scored six points during a 14-2 run to put the Lady Techsters ahead 50-36. Anthony wasn’t the only key contributor for Tech in the win. Stahly connected on 3-of-7 3-pointers while hitting 8-of-8 free throws in the final two minutes while junior Reauna Cleaver added 10 points and six rebounds.
Cleaver also led an outstanding Lady Techster defensive effort, holding preseason C-USA Player of the Year, Alex Johnson to 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting while forcing six turnovers.
“Sweets (Cleaver) was phenomenal,” Stoehr said. “We have been on her about playing in her stance and playing balanced and I thought Johnson didn’t just lay on her. She moved her feet, got to position and forced some really tough catches and forced her outside the post box.”
Senior Alexus Malone equally played a key role in stopping the Blue Raiders go to option and added nine points and seven rebounds of her own.
“I thought they did a really good job on Lex (Alex Johnson)” Stoehr said. “They weren’t going to let her catch and have easy touches and easy looks. I really felt like we had balance. I thought we got some good contributions from our bench tonight. We have to have all 13.”
Stoehr said she implored her players for more effort and energy from a team standpoint at halftime. She believed they had committed far too many silly fouls and were not taking good shots offensively.
Tech shot 11-of-18 from the field and 17-21 from the charity stripe to finish the contest. A vast improvement on the 7-of-22 from the field and 8-of-14 from the free throw line that the Lady Techsters shot in the first half, which played a key role in the momentum shift that led to the win.