WINFIELD, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) ---
Sonerka White (Houston, Texas, Eisenhower HS) tallied 17 points and
Brittany Roberts (Mansfield, Texas, Lake Ridge HS) added 12 points and 12 rebounds but the McPherson College women's basketball could not stop an early 3-point barrage by Southwestern College coupled with a 28-point, 13-rebound night by Jordyn Miller as the Lady Builders posted a 78-55 victory Wednesday night at Stewart Field House.
McPherson (11-11, 7-8 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference) opened the game with five straight points on a
Cami Richardson (Hesston, Kan., Hesston HS) 3-pointer and a layup by
Emma Van Donselaar (Shawnee, Kan., Shawnee Mission West HS), but Southwestern (5-18, 4-11 KCAC) responded with a 17-6 run capped by a 3-pointer by Taylor Henderson to grab a 17-11 lead with 1:03 to play in the quarter.
White cut the deficit in half in the final seconds of the frame, poking the ball away from Henderson and converting the fast-break opportunity on the other end. Fouled on the play, White made the ensuing free throw to make it 17-14 headed to the second quarter.
Miller scored the first five points of the second frame to extend the Lady Builder lead to eight at 22-14 less than two minutes in. McPherson had no answer for Southwestern's long range shooting as a 5-for-8 effort from behind the arc in the quarter - capped by another Henderson 3-pointer at the buzzer - gave the hosts a 38-23 lead at the break.
The Lady Builders opened the second half with a 10-2 run to run the lead to 23 points with 7:08 remaining in the quarter. The lead would grow to 24 on a pair of Miller free throws at the 4:22 mark, but McPherson outscored Southwestern, 10-5, down the stretch to close the deficit to 19 headed to the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs continued to chip away at the lead, getting to within 13 points at 63-50 on a layup by White at the 5:37 mark. That would be as close as McPherson would get, though, as Southwestern closed the game with 15 of the final 20 points.
While Southwestern held a 43-42 edge on the boards overall, McPherson dominated on the offensive glass by a 20-9 margin. The Bulldogs were not able capitalize, though, as the Lady Builders finished with an 18-14 edge in second-chance points.
McPherson shot just 30.9 percent (21-of-68) from the field compared to 45.5 percent (25-of-55) for Southwestern. The Lady Builders finished with 12 3-pointers, including eight in the first half, while the Bulldogs were just 6-of-22 from behind the arc. Southwestern also held a significant advantage at the free-throw line, hitting on 16 of 19 opportunities. McPherson finished 7-of-20 from the charity stripe.
White picked up her 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting from the field with a pair of 3-pointers. She also added four rebounds and a pair of steals off the bench. Roberts had two steals, an assist and a block in addition to her double-double.
Brooke Zimmerman (Aurora, Colo., Western Nebraska CC) added eight points and five rebounds, while
Kristina Battle (Houston, Texas, Austin HS) had seven points and three steals.
Miller was a force inside for the Lady Builders, hitting 10 of 15 shots from the field. Three of her misses came from behind the arc. She was also 6-of-7 at the line with two assists and two steals. Henderson added 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting with four 3-pointers. She also had five assists, while Walck added eight points, eight rebounds and a pair of assists.
The Bulldogs return home Saturday to face Sterling College (14-8, 11-4 KCAC) in the first of back-to-back home contests. The Warriors won the first meeting, 80-72, on Dec. 6 in Sterling. Tipoff is slated for 5 p.m. from the Sport Center.
