Lady Techsters fall at USM, fall to 0-4 in league play
Photo by Patrick Davis
Louisiana Tech’s Keiunna Walker scored a team-high 19 points, but the Lady Techsters fell to Southern Miss on the road Thursday.
HATTIESBURG, Mississippi — Despite a game-high 19 points by Junior Keiunna Walker, the Louisiana Tech fell to Southern Miss 65-60 on Thursday night inside the Reed Green Coliseum in Conference USA action.
The Lady Techsters fall to 8-7 on the year and 0-4 in Conference USA action with the loss, while Southern Miss improves to 10-5 overall and 2-2 in conference play.?A back-and-forth affair early, saw both teams trade baskets through the midway point of the opening period.
Eight early points by Walker and a jumper by sophomore Anna Larr Roberson lifted Tech to a 14-10 lead with 2:58 left in the first quarter.
A pair of layups in the last minute of the opening frame by Southern Miss cut Tech’s lead down to 17-16 after the first period.
Walker drained a mid-range jumper to open the second stanza, giving Tech a 19-16 advantage. Momentum changed directions moments later as Southern Miss rattled off a 9-2 run to take a 25-
21 lead. Tech rallied to take the lead at 28-27 with 3:32 remaining in the first half as Roberson knocked down her first three of the season. Another jumper and a three by Southern Miss gave the Golden Eagles a 32-28 lead at the break.
Southern Miss extended its lead out to doublefigures as Melyia Grayson and Macy Weaver combined on a 10-2 run to take a 42-32 lead with 6:55 left in the third period. The Lady Techsters responded with a 19-5 surge that featured baskets by six different Tech players.
Back-to-back three’s by sophomore Lotte Sant and Walker as well as layups by sophomore Salma Bates and Brannon pushed Tech out in front 51-47, before taking a 52-50 lead into the fourth quarter.
Tech pushed their lead out to as many as seven at 58-51 with 6:51 left in the game on a jumper by Roberson and a layup by Walker, but Southern Miss answers with a 14-2 run over the final 6:32 of the game to claim the 65-60 victory over the Lady Techsters.
Roberson collected her sixth double-double of the season and the 13th of her career with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Her six double-doubles is the second most in C-USA this season.
The Lady Techsters return to the Thomas Assembly Center on Monday to battle Texas-San Antonio at 1 p.m.
