UE women’s basketball high flying offense not enough to quell Murray State

The Purple Aces set a season-high 22 assists over 40 minutes

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – It was a shootout on Sunday afternoon in Meeks Family Fieldhouse as the University of Evansville women’s basketball team came just short in a 90-72 loss against the Murray State Racers.

The Purple Aces had their best offensive game of Missouri Valley Conference play facing the Racers by shooting 45.5% from the floor and 50% from behind the arc. Along with a strong offensive front, UE’s defense kept Murray State six percent below its season-scoring percentage. Four separate Evansville players had double-digit games including guards Kynidi Mason Striverson, Alana Striverson, and post players Barbora Tomancova and Nevaeh Thomas.

“I’m really really proud of our effort and our bounce back from our last game,” said Head Coach Robyn Scherr-Wells. “We gave ourselves a chance to win. We put ourselves in a position going into the fourth quarter with the game in reach. We made some mistakes down the stretch that we need to clean up. But I feel like we can if we continue to put ourselves in that spot. Murray State is one of the best teams in our conference right now, and it was a fun game to play in and a fun game to coach,”.

The Aces got the first bucket of Sunday’s matchup from center Barbora Tomancova off a Racer turnover, setting the tone for the game. Murray State responded with the first run of the day with eight points and two threes. UE responded with a three of its own from guard Kynidi Mason Striverson. Mason Striverson couldn’t be stopped in the first quarter, leading Evansville with eight points and shooting 57%. An 8-2 stretch for the Racers in the final three minutes had the Aces facing a six-point deficit.

It was all UE to start the second quarter as the team opened on a four-point run to make it a one-basket game. The two squads matched each other shot-for-shot over the next three minutes before Murray State slightly pulled away. In the final two minutes of the first half Evansville had a 7-3 run to make it a four-point game going into the second half.

The Aces had a quiet start to the third quarter as their first points came three minutes in from guard Tené Smith. UE tried to match the Racers shooting but fell behind by 13 points with four minutes left in the quarter. A jump shot three from Mason Striverson with 3:12 on the clock sparked an eight-point run to get within five. Back-to-back threes from Striverson made it only a four-point game with a minute and a half left. Evansville headed into the final quarter trailing by only five and a chance to win its first conference game of the season.

Using their momentum from the third quarter, the Aces made two quick baskets for a one-point game. Murray State responded with four points but a layup from Tomancova following a missed Racer basket returned it to a one possession game. But a four-minute cold stretch from UE’s offense put the team down by 13 with four minutes to go. A nine-point run by Murray State put the game out of reach for Evansville as they fell 90-72.

Mason Striverson led the team on offense with 17 points, four assists, and two steals. Sister Alana Striverson had a similar stat line with 14 points, four assists, and one steal including four made three pointers. Also, in double figures for the Aces were Tomancova with her fourth double-double at 12 points and 11 rebounds and Thomas with 10 points, three assists, and one steal. Tomancova’s 13 rebounds led the team on defense as no Ace added a block through 40 minutes. As a team, UE set a season-high 22 assists while also having their strongest game from the arc since November at 50% shooting.

Evansville hits the road for its next game on Friday, Jan. 19. The Aces head to Springfield, Mo. to take on the Missouri State Lady Bears in a Friday night clash. Tip-off from Great Southern Bank Arena is set for 6:30 p.m.