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HomeSportsAPSU Govs Basketball loses at SIU Edwardsville, 67-55

APSU Govs Basketball loses at SIU Edwardsville, 67-55

APSU Sports Information

APSU Women's BasketballClarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University women’s basketball team fell to SIU Edwardsville 67-55 in a physical mid-week game, Wednesday.

Austin Peay (15-13, 8-9 OVC) started out strong in an aggressive man-to-man defense, winning the battle on the boards 8-3 in the first quarter.

Austin Peay Women's Basketball comes up short in physical game at SIU Edwardsville Wednesday night. (APSU Sports Information)
Austin Peay Women’s Basketball comes up short in physical game at SIU Edwardsville Wednesday night. (APSU Sports Information)

The Govs were lead by senior center, Brianne Alexander, who scored eight points in the first quarter, as the Govs scored 10 points in the paint, four points off of SIUE turnovers, and four second-chance points.

Austin Peay broke a run by the Cougars midway through the first period, before closing out the quarter on a 7-0 run of their own.

Arielle Gonzalez-Varner showed her strength on both ends of the floor in the first half, turning defense into offense, pulling down six rebounds and scoring four points in the opening two periods.

APSU Basketball - Bri WilliamsBoth teams struggled with scoring droughts, but it was Austin Peay with the four-point lead at the half, after Alexander got an offensive put-back to go at the halftime buzzer.

The Governors struggled from the floor in the third quarter, as SIU Edwardsville quickly erased the Govs’ halftime lead. Austin Peay was able to stop the bleeding momentarily behind the offensive play of Bri Williams, who stopped an 8-0 Cougar run with a three-pointer well behind the arc.

Despite the offensive lapse in the third period, the Governors’ defense stood strong as the Govs pulled within five going into the final quarter.

APSU Basketball - Keisha GregoryAustin Peay continued to make mini runs at the Cougars throughout the fourth, as the lead hovered around nine points. After the final media timeout, Austin Peay made a final push going on a 7-0 run, but could not overcome the Cougars offensive pressure, falling in their final road game of the regular season, 67-55

Keisha Gregory led the Governors with 13 points and six rebounds, while Falon Baker and Alexander each added 11 points. Alexander pulled down nine rebounds and dished out three assists, while Baker shot 50.0 percent from behind the arc.

Arielle Gonzalez-Varner led the team in rebounds with 10 rebounds and eight points, while Nieja Crawford scored seven of Austin Peay’s 10 bench points.

Game Notes

APSU Basketball - Shelbe PiggieGovs outrebounded the Cougars 42-31, who are second in the Ohio Valley Conference in rebounding margin and lead the league in defensive rebounding.

Shelbe Piggie earned her first career start against the Cougars, in the final road game of her sophomore season.

Gonzalez-Varner led the Governors with 10 rebounds.

Three Govenors scored in double digits: Gregory (13), Baker (11) and Alexander (11).

The Govs scored 26 points in the paint and recorded 20 second-chance points as a reward for their work on the offensive glass.

David Midlick’s Musings

Shelbe’s First Start
“She is able to put pressure on the defense and score the ball, she is a threat as a three point shooter and can push the ball in transition.”

Owning the Boards
“I thought we made a commitment that we needed to win that battle on the boards, offensive and defensive rebounding, and I think that the ladies really made a commitment to that tonight.”

Keeping it Close
“I thought for long stretches in the game we competed with strong effort, we had some lapses, but overall when you go on the road against the second place team in this conference you have to bring energy and effort above anything else.”

Next Up for APSU Women’s Basketball

Rivalry weekend comes to Clarksville, as the Govs wrap up the regular season 4:30pm, Saturday against Murray State in the Heritage Bank Battle of the Border.

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