MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Faulkner found its range early and then had to play through a second-half lull to knock off Thomas 73-61 in the SSAC Women's Basketball Tournament Wednesday. The matchup of the No. 7 and No. 10 seeds opened with a free-flowing Lady Eagle offense that made eight threes in the first half despite missing starters
Ruthie Smith and
Keyarra Scottland for long stretches with early foul trouble.
Faulkner played its way to a 20-9 lead through the first quarter of play due in large part to five made threes in the opening 10 minutes. By halftime, that margin grew to 38-21 and the Lady Eagles appeared ready to run away with it. Not ready to see its season end, Thomas opened the third quarter on a 15-5 run that clawed the deficit back to seven.
Faulkner then got a pair of free throws from
Sarah Wisniowski ahead of a three from Scottland. Two more bonus shots from Scottland and another made three by
Nequoia Adams lifted the margin back to 14 headed into the fourth quarter. Adams then dished to
Ella Jane Connell for another made triple to start the fourth and effectively put the game away.
Dee Guinn did the heavy lifting early for Faulkner, scoring 14 of her 17 points in the first half. Adams added 14 points and seven assists. Smith finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds while Connell had 10 points.
Faulkner (14-13) renews its rivalry with No. 2 seed Loyola Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl.
