Behind the scoring and rebounding of Carrie Cheeks and Shelby Brown, the Lee University women’s basketball team extended its winning streak to seven with a 68-52 defeat of Mississippi College Saturday afternoon at Paul Dana Walker Arena.
“It’s a great matchup with us and Mississippi College,” said Lee head coach Marty Rowe. “The series record is deceiving for the fact that they match up with us better than anybody in the league because of how big they are. We knew we were going to have to go with our big lineup and establish inside early.
Carrie was so active early and Shelby made big shot after big shot.”
Cheeks made 8-of-9 shots to tally 16 points in the first period. She finished the game 11-of-14 from the field with a game-high 25 points. The senior grabbed 10 rebounds to complete her third double-double of the season and 16th in her career.
Brown became the 26th Lady Flame to reach 1,000 career points with her eighth point of the game, a layup with 7:39 left in the third period. The senior would tack on eight more to finish the game with 16 points. Brown also had five rebounds and an assist in the win.
“It was a goal of mine,” admitted Brown. “It feels good to achieve it, but I wouldn’t be here without my teammates. We were able to get a lot of open looks on the outside. Carrie set a lot of good screens on our post play to get me open, so it was a team effort for sure.”
Erin Walsh made two 3-pointers on her way to eight points and eight rebounds. Lindsey Roddy added seven points, four boards, five assists and a steal to the tally. Abby Bertram dished out seven assists to complement her five points.
The Lady Choctaws (6-11, 2-9 GSC) placed two players in double-digit scoring. Kelley Allen posted 12 points and grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds. Zan Ratcliffe contributed 10 points, six assists and three rebounds.
The Lady Flames jumped out to a 23-8 lead following the opening 10 minutes, before Mississippi College cut into their deficit by outscoring Lee 15-11 in the second period to set the halftime score at 34-23. The third period was played to a 17-17 tie and the Lady Flames added to their lead by posting a 17-12 advantage in the final 10 minutes to supply the 16 point final margin.
Lee made 27-of-56 (.482) shots from the field and were 7-for-23 (.304) from behind the arc. The Lady Choctaws were 21-for-56 (.375) overall and 4-of-14 (.286) from distance. Neither team held a distinct advantage at the free throw line. Lee made 7-of-10 (.700) attempts, while MC was 6-for-15 (.400).
The Lady Flames begin a four-game road stretch on Thursday when they travel to Memphis, Tenn., to face Christian Brothers University at 6 p.m. EST. Following games at Union University, West Florida and Valdosta State, the Lady Flames will return to Walker Arena on Feb. 8.
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