EDMOND, Okla. – Missouri S&T's women's basketball team dominated the middle two quarters of Saturday evening's contest to pick up its second victory of the 2022-23 campaign, as it outscored Newman 44-16 over the second and third quarters of action to cruise to a 73-42 victory over the Jets in the Central Oklahoma Classic.
The Miners trailed 16-11 after one quarter of play, but dominated the second and third periods by going 18-of-34 from the floor – 52.9 percent – while holding the Jets (2-1) to a seven-of-24 mark (29.2 percent) over that same stretch.
Newman had the five-point lead when the second quarter began and still held a four-point lead nearly midway through the period, but S&T went on an 11-0 run that gave it the lead for good. The run started on a jumper by
Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones), then following a Newman turnover,
Kristen Keys (St. Louis, MO/Westminster Christian Academy) drained a three-pointer to put S&T up 23-22.
The Miners continued the run with a conventional three-point play by
Katelynne Roberts (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville), a free throw from
Alex Kerr (St. Louis, MO/St. Joseph's Academy) and another basket following a turnover by Keys to take a seven-point lead. After the Jets got a free throw from Riley Rottinghaus to stop the 11-point run, Keys scored the final basket of the half to give the Miners an eight-point lead at the break.
S&T didn't allow the halftime break to slow its momentum, as it opened the second half by scoring 12 of the first 16 points. Rodriguez was responsible for the final 10 of the points in that stretch, including two of her four three-point baskets in the contest. The Jets' basket after the second trey by Rodriguez cut the S&T lead to 14, which would end up being the closest they would get the rest of the night.
The Miners outscored Newman 24-9 in the third quarter and would eventually lead by as many as 32 points in the final period.
Rodriguez, who had scored a total of just 20 points in the Miners' first three games of the season, cleared the 20-point plateau for the second straight night as she led all scorers with 24 points. She went 10-of-15 from the field in the game and also added three assists and four steals in the contest.
Keys also finished in double figures with 14 points, while Kerr had nine points and a team-high nine rebounds as the Miners had a nine-rebound advantage in the game. S&T also forced 19 turnovers and turned that into 22 points.
Newman was led by Britney Ho with 14 points as she was the only Jet to end up in double figures. The Miners held the Jets to just 29.1 percent shooting in the game and to a one-of-16 mark from three-point range.
Missouri S&T will continue its road stretch Wednesday when it takes on Missouri Southern in a 5:30 p.m. game in Joplin, Mo.
