NEW ORLEANS - Middle Tennessee went on
an 18-0 run in the first half when the University of New Orleans
was within four points to take a commanding lead that they would not relinquish
in an 87-53 victory on Saturday afternoon at Lakefront Arena.
MT (17-4,
9-0 SBC) won for the 12th straight game as Brandi Brown, who made six
three-pointers in the opening half, finished with a career-high 28 points.
Alysha Clark added her ninth double-double of the season with 23 points and
10 rebounds for the Lady Raiders.
UNO (9-11,
4-5 SBC) shot over 70 percent from the charity stripe for the eighth straight
game, but struggled from the field, shooting at a 28.9 percent clip.
Jada
Frazier had 14 points for the Lady Privateers while Brittany Helm matched it
with another 14, highlighted by a 10 of 11 night from the stripe
A series of
runs gave MT the advantage from nearly the start of the game.
Candice
McGee opened the game's scoring with a three-pointer for the UNO before the
Lady Raiders reeled off 11 straight points to get in the driver's seat. After a
4-0 run by UNO, MT once more went on a run, scoring the next 18 points to open
up a 29-7 lead.
The Lady
Raiders would build their advantage to 26 points heading into the break at
44-18, aided by 51.7 percent shooting from the field, in addition to 13 Lady
Privateer turnovers.
In the
second half, Helm scored all 14 of her points after shooting 0 of 6 in the
opening 20 minutes.
UNO would
limit their turnovers to six while shooting 33.3 percent from the field
compared to their 23.8 percent clip in the opening half.
It would
not be enough however as Brown scored 10 points and the Lady Raiders outscored
UNO 44-35 to build their lead up to a high of 37 points with just over a minute
remaining.
The Lady
Privateers will continue their two-game homestand with a Wednesday night
contest against Florida International. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m.
