Slow start sinks Aces women’s basketball against UIC.
The Purple Aces had an offensive season-low in the first half.
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In their annual Pride game, the University of Evansville struggled with the UIC Flames’ physical play in a 74-43 loss.
The Purple Aces offense took a half to get going on Thursday night, falling behind UIC early. UE could not find a second-half comeback to challenge the Flames despite sophomore forward Maggie Hartwig (Sauk City, Wis. / Sauk Prairie HS) scoring 11 points in the third quarter. Hartwig led Evansville with 14 points while freshman point guard Avery Kelley (Evansville, Ind. / Memorial HS) continued her double-figure scoring streak in her first career start with 10 points.
Both offensive struggled early as neither scored for the first two and a half minutes. It would be UIC that broke the scoreless spell with the first 11 points of the night. The Aces’ first points came over six minutes into the game on a three by freshman guard Logan Luebbers Palmer (Union, Ky. / Randall K. Cooper HS). UE would not score again until the final second as guard Júlia Palomo (La Seu d’Urgell, Spain) made a three-point play at the line for a 15-6 game.
Evansville had a quicker start to the second quarter with four points in the first three minutes. But the Aces only added two points in the final six minutes of the first half for a season-low 12 points. UE headed into halftime down 21 points as the Flames carried a 33-12 lead.
Hartwig came alive in the third quarter for Evansville with eight straight points to begin the second half. The Aces followed up Hartwig’s hot start with three straight triples midway through the quarter to get within 18. UIC responded with a 10-point run keeping the Aces scoreless for almost four minutes. Freshman guard Camryn Runner (Cicero, Ind. / Hamilton Heights HS) ended the cold spell with a layup in the final 30 seconds of the third to make it a 57-29 game.
UE began the fourth quarter with back-to-back jumpers. It became a back-and-forth game of small runs that did not change the deficit for Evansville. Neither team made a basket for over the final three minutes of the game as the Aces fell to UIC 74-43.
Hartwig and Kelley were the only two UE players in double figures while Runner led the team on defense with eight rebounds. Palomo had a team high in both assists and steals with three of each.
Evansville continues its homestand with its National Girls and Women in Sports game. On Saturday, February 1 the Aces will host the Valparaiso Beacons for a 5 p.m. tip at Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
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