WKU Women’s Basketball’s defensive tenacity proved to be too much for the Sam Houston State Bearkats Saturday as the Lady Toppers took down the Bearkats 82-49.
The Lady Toppers defense allowed just 49 points and forced 30 Bearkat turnovers of which 10 came in the first quarter. WKU held SHSU to just 46 shot attempts and 32% from the field.
The shots fell for the Lady Toppers, shooting 60% from the floor with four players in double figures. The 60% mark was the best in Conference USA play this season for the Lady Toppers.
“It’s great when the shots fall, we’ve been on the other end of that some games where it’s not so great, so to see that succeed, that’s a great stat,” guard Mackenzie Chatfield said.
It was a full team effort with four players in double-figures and four others with eight or more points. Chatfield led WKU with 13 points and 10 assists, getting her first career double-double.
“The numbers are nice, but at the end of the day the win is even nicer, so I’m just glad we could do it all together and so many people stepped up today,” Chatfield said. “To see the bench come in and do what they did, I’m just really proud of everybody and thankful for my teammates having the confidence in me to make some passes to them.”
First Half
The Lady Toppers’ fast-paced action was too much for the Bearkats early. WKU forced five quick turnovers in just four minutes resulting in a Sam Houston timeout where WKU led 10-5. Junior guard Josie Gilvin and senior Zsofia Telegdy led the way with six points to give the Lady Toppers a 22-10 lead going into the second.
WKU continued pressuring SHSU into mistakes, forcing 10 first quarter turnovers.
The Lady Toppers shared the fortune in the first quarter, with all five starters scoring
SHSU came out in the second quarter with defensive pressure, pulling the deficit to six, 26-20. The Lady Toppers continued to be a problem on the glass, pulling down three offensive rebounds which resulted in an 8-0 run going into the media timeout and taking a 14-point lead 34-20.
WKU continued to dominate in every way, finishing the second quarter on a 13-2 run and taking a 47-22 lead heading into the half.
Second Half
It was all WKU’s Chatfield starting the third quarter, scoring all eight points going into the media timeout pulling her total to 13 points. SHSU could not get a run going on offense without the Lady Toppers countering with a score of their own. WKU headed into the fourth in complete control 65-33.
In the fourth, freshman forward Salma Kedhr led the way for the Lady Toppers with six points. It was all WKU taking a dominating win 82-49 to continue their five-game win streak.
The Lady Toppers will look for their sixth straight win at UTEP Thursday, Jan. 30.
Sports Reporter Peyton Reid can be reached at [email protected].