Lady Tigers defeat Braves to extend win streak to 11

Wakil Atig

Sports Editor

The Lee E. Williams Athletic Assembly Center was filled to capacity on Feb. 8 as the Lady Tigers of Jackson State University battled long time rival Alcorn State University in a conference showdown.

Entering this game JSU was on a 10-game winning streak and looked to extend their streak to 11 and complete a season sweep over ASU.

From the opening tip it was clear that this was going to be a competitive game as both teams got off to tremendous starts. In the first quarter, JSU pounded points in the paint early by dominating the boards. JSU scored a total of 38 points in the paint and grabbed 38 rebounds in the game.

The Lady Tigers offensive charge was led by senior, Marneisha Hamer who had a stellar evening finishing the game with 12 points, seven rebounds and four blocks.

ASU did things differently as they controlled the tempo of the game with their fast pace on offense and suffocating full-court press on defense. The Lady Braves finished the game with a total of 13 fast break points and 20 points off turnovers.

In the second quarter, JSU’s offensive dominance continued as they simply remained poised despite the scratchy defense of ASU. JSU attacked the paint consistently and got to the freethrow line at will. Kaisah Lucky led the Lady Tigers from the freethrow line scoring 11 of her 14 points for the game from the line. She also had a game high of six assists.

At the end of the first half ASU began to cut into the lead of JSU by capitalizing off turnovers. Despite ASU trailing for the majority of the half, ASU still controlled the pace of the game as they made it very difficult for JSU to run away with the game. It was clear that they weren’t phased by the win streak of JSU on their home floor. JSU led 38-34 at the end of the first half.

At the start of the third quarter, JSU was relentless on defense. Within the first few possessions of the quarter, junior, Ameshya Williams electrified the crowd with a life altering block that sent the ball flying in the stands. This play gave the Lady Tigers the momentum they needed to take full control of the game. Williams also scored 14 points on 7-for-11 shooting and had a game high nine rebounds.

As the third quarter continued, JSU would slowly begin to show signs of fatigue as they became careless with the ball. ASU 3-point shooting kept them afloat throughout the third quarter and prevented them from trailing by a large margin. But that would change in the fourth quarter.

Despite their aggressiveness on defense and 3-point shooting, ASU just couldn’t figure out a way to completely take control of the game in the fourth quarter. The Lady Braves fought very hard and forced JSU to dig deep at times throughout the game.

JSU eventually led by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter before defeating Alcorn State University, 76-66. This was the Lady Tigers eleventh straight victory as their record improved to 12-8 overall and 10-0 in conference play.

Grant Broadway, a senior biology pre-pharmacy major from Little Rock, Ark., was highly impressed by the women’s performance against Alcorn State University.

 

“They were simply amazing tonight. I feel like the support from the students and fans tonight was great and I’m so proud of our women’s team and what they’ve been doing so far this season,” said Broadway.

Jordan Jefferson, a senior political science major from Jackson, Miss., and current Student Government Association opposition is excited for what the Lady Tigers can do in the future.

“I’m excited to see what our womens team will do in the future and hopefully they can bring home the SWAC championship. We’ve been in a drought with championships and I believe this team has what it takes to change that,” said Jefferson.