Miami University
Indiana State
RedHawks Fall to Indiana State, 62-54
12/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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OXFORD, Ohio - After a strong opening half, a tough third quarter offensively proved costly as Miami dropped a 62-54 decision to Indiana State on Saturday at Millett Hall. The loss puts the Red & White's record to 2-5 on the year, while the Sycamores moved to 4-4 overall.
Lauren Dickerson and Jazz Smith finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively. Dickerson also led the way in assists, dishing out five helpers, while Kendall McCoy lead the effort on the glass with eight boards. Indiana State got strong outings from Ashley Taia, who collected 23 points, and Wendi Bibbins, who chipped in 16 points. Both also lead their team in rebounding with seven boards apiece.
The Red & White started the game slow offensively, missing their first four attempts from the field. After falling down 5-0 in the opening moments, a Smith jumper from the corner just over two minutes in got things going. Buckets by McCoy, Megan Galloway and Dickerson quickly had Miami up 13-7 with four and half minutes left in the opening frame. Leah Purvis, Abbey Hoff and Kayla Brown joined the effort and combined to score the RedHawks' final 12 points of the quarter, giving MU a 25-14 advantage at the end of the first stanza.
Five quick points from Smith extended the RedHawk lead in the early part of the second quarter. Indiana State would settle in and outscore Miami 18-7 over the final 7:57 of the half. Despite the Sycamore surge, Miami entered the locker with a 37-32 lead. The Red & White shot 45.5 percent from the field on 15-of-33 shooting, while ISU hit 13 of their 28 attempts for a 46.4 field goal percentage.
The momentum from the Sycamores' first half finish carried over into the third quarter, and it happened to coincide with an MU offensive slump. Indiana State hit seven of their 13 attempts for 20 points, while the RedHawks made just two buckets on 11 attempts and totaled seven points in the quarter. ISU took a 52-44 lead into the final frame.
Facing an eight-point deficit, the RedHawks needed to find their shooting tough again. Following some back-and-forth action for several minutes, two free throws by McCoy and back-to-back jumpers from Smith brought the ISU lead down to three at 57-54. However, the Sycamores would score the final five points of the game, all by way of the charity stripe, to top the `Hawks.
Miami returns to the court on Wednesday, Dec. 7 as they host IUPUI. Tip is set for 7 p.m.
