EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Trailing 55-41 heading into the fourth quarter against SIUE, the University of Evansville mounted a furious comeback, getting within two with 5:59 to play, but came up just short on Tuesday night with a 75-69 setback. Evansville made 16 three-pointers on the night, their most in a single game since November 16, 2015.
Camryn Runner (Cicero, Ind./Hamilton Heights) led the Aces in scoring with 18 points, playing 39 of 40 minutes, while also tallying six assists. Freshman Sydney Huber (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Mount Vernon) had a breakout night with 17 points, going 5-for-8 from three, and scored 12 points in the fourth quarter on 4-for-5 shooting from deep. Fellow freshman Jelena Savic (Melbourne, Australia/ Kurunjang Secondary College) also enjoyed a strong performance with 12 points, including a 3-for-5 mark from three, while Logan Luebbers Palmer (Union, Ky./Randall K. Cooper) scored in double figures for the fifth game in a row with 16 points and 4-for-6 mark from three-point range.
Evansville got off to an early lead, with Luebbers Palmer knocking down a long two and BreAunna Ward (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) and Savic sinking triples to give the Aces an 8-7 advantage. However, the Cougars dominated the rest of the period, taking a 19-11 lead into the second quarter.
SIUE continued to dominate the game in the first six and a half minutes of the second quarter, building a 34-15 lead. Needing to sway some momentum heading into the half, the Aces outscored the Cougars 8-2 to end the half, using five points from Huber and three points from Savic to cut into the deficit.
After the Cougars got their lead back up to 18 points early in the third quarter, Runner and Luebbers Palmer rattled off a pair of threes to make the score 41-29. Runner continued to keep her team in the game with another three and a layup to bring it back within 11 with 3:06 to go before SIUE ended the period with a 55-41 advantage.
The Purple Aces mounted their fourth quarter comeback immediately, with Elle Snyder (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) getting a steal on the opening possession and Luebbers Palmer capitalizing with a three, opening a three-point barrage. On the next possession, Huber knocked down a triple, while Lubbers Palmer drilled another on the next trip down the floor to make it 57-50 with 7:46 remaining.
Huber cashed in another three-ball to make it a four-point game before Runner stuck a pull-up jumper with 5:59 remaining, cutting SIUE’s lead to just two. However, the Cougars responded with a run of their own, scoring on three-straight possessions to bring their lead back up to 10.
Evansville continued to battle in the final minutes of action, with two more threes from Huber, a triple by Savic, and a layup by Lubbers Palmer making it 69-66 with 31 seconds remaining. Needing to make their free throws to secure the win, the Cougars did just that, knocking down all six shots from the charity stripe in the final 30 seconds to escape with the win.
Evansville shot a season-best 47.2% from the field, including a blistering 53.3% mark from three-point range. The Aces’ 28-point fourth quarter serves as their highest-scoring quarter of the season.
The Aces return to Meeks Family Fieldhouse on Sunday, hosting Northern Illinois. Tip-off is set for 3 PM.
