Box Score

MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Southern Arkansas women's basketball team began their 2013-14 Great American Conference slate on a high note as they defeated Northwestern Oklahoma by a score of 74-59 on Thursday night in the W.T. Watson Center.
 
The conference win for the Lady Muleriders (2-1, 1-0 GAC) is their first since a 74-68 win against Henderson State back on January 26, 2012. It is also their first home conference win since a 74-71 win over East Central on January 19, 2012.
 
In Thursday night's game, the Lady Muleriders scored the game's first points as Barvion Wyatt layed one in on the team's first possession. A layup by Mariam Ridgwell following a steal by Rebekah Knudson on NWOSU's next possession gave the Lady Muleriders a 4-0 lead. After falling into that early 4-0 hole, the visiting Rangers (0-5, 0-1 GAC) would score four unanswered points to knot the game at four-all. That would be as close as they could get, however, as the Lady Muleriders would not relinquish their lead the rest of the way out.
 
Taking a seven-point lead into the locker room, 35-28, the Lady Muleriders would quickly grow their advantage out to 13 points, 41-28, as they scored the first six points of the second half. The Lady Muleriders would maintain a double-digit lead over the next seven minutes of play before the Rangers were able to get back to within single digits right at the halfway point of the half.
 
The Rangers would cut it down to as little as five points with 8:08 remaining as Micaela Yu completed an old-fashioned three-point play. It would only take the Lady Muleriders a little over a minute and a half to get their lead back to double-digits. Once they did that again, the Lady Muleriders would coast to the 15-point victory.     
 
As has been the case early on this season, the Lady Muleriders' offense was paced by a balanced scoring effort as 11 players scored at least two points in the game. The scoring balance for the Lady Muleriders also showed through their production off the bench. On Thursday night, the Lady Muleriders got a combined 39 points off of their bench. 20 of those points came from junior forward Chanel Miller as she was 6-of-8 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the free throw line.
 
The 20-point night for Miller marks the high for a Lady Mulerider in a game so far this season. Right behind Miller in scoring on the night was junior forward Mariam Ridgwell. Ridgwell, on the strength of 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and 3-of-3 from the charity stripe, ended with a season-high 19 points.
 
The Lady Muleriders will now prepare for a high-powered offensive attack from Southwestern Oklahoma as SAU will welcome the Lady Bulldogs into the W.T. Watson Center on Saturday, November 23. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.