TicketsNov. 28, 2008
Game Notes | Tournament Central | | |
CINCINNATI - Jill Stephens (Mineral Wells, W.Va./Parkersburg South) scored a game-high 19 points to lead the University of Cincinnati women's basketball team to a 66-45 win against Mississippi Valley State in the Courtyard by Marriott of Florence Thanksgiving Classic on Friday (Nov. 28) at Fifth Third Arena.
Michelle Jones (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame) scored 17 points and added six rebounds and Kahla Roudebush (Noblesville, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) scored 12 points for the Bearcats.
UC (3-1) led by as much as 15 in the first half and took a 34-24 lead into halftime.
Jones scored 12 points in 12 minutes in the first half and Stephens added 11 on 5-of-6 shooting.
After a Brittany Rochelle layup brought MVSU (0-3) to within five, 34-29, with 17:13 to play, UC embarked on a 14-2 run to take a 48-31 lead with 11:14 to play. The Devilettes never got closer than 13 the rest of the way.
Angel Morgan (Springfield, Ohio/Springfield North), making her second straight start, grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds and added four assists and a steal. The Bearcats outrebounded the Devilettes, 44-29, including a 16-7 edge on the offensive glass.
Stephens hit 3-of-4 from behind the three-point line, her first makes of the season. She led the Bearcats and finished third in the BIG EAST last season, shooting at a .422 clip from beyond the arc. Eight different Bearcats scored, including Elisa Shoate (Spiro, Okla./Arkansas-Fort Smith), who connected on a pair of free throws for her first points as a Bearcat.
UC held its fourth straight opponent to less than 60 points and held the Devilettes to .315 (17-54) shooting.
MVSU was led by Ashley Brown's 14 points.
In the opening game of the tournament, Eastern Illinois topped Savannah State, 62-40.
The Bearcats will take on Savannah State at 5 p.m. on Saturday, followed by Eastern Illinois vs. Mississippi Valley State at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the door for $7 for adults, $5 for children 12 and under and $3 per person fro groups of 10 or more.