Women's Basketball | 2/17/2019 12:13:00 PM
Each week David Boyce, the MIAA’s featured writer, covers a key match-up in one of the conference’s sports. In this MIAA Showcase, David Boyce covers the women’s basketball match-up between Central Missouri at Missouri Western.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - A couple of juniors on the University of Central Missouri women’s basketball team silenced the Griffons early in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon on senior day at Missouri Western.
Holding a slim four-point lead entering the final quarter, Peyton Taylor and Morgan Fleming made several baskets that quickly extended the Jennies’ lead to 12 points.
The double-digit advantage was enough for Central Missouri to pull out a 74-68 victory over the Griffons at MWSU Fieldhouse. With the win, Central Missouri improved to 18-5 overall and 11-4 in the MIAA. Missouri Western dropped to 12-12 and 7-8.
“Missouri Western is always a tough place to play. They fight really hard at home. They have a good crowd,” said Fleming, who finished with 24 points and six assists. “This is a huge win for us on the road. It prepares us for the postseason. MIAA is tough night in and night out.”
At the start of the fourth quarter, Missouri Western was certainly in a position to have a victorious senior day. The Griffons held leads in each of the first three quarters and junior Katrina Roenfeldt was hitting shots all over the court. She finished with a game-high 29 points.
But Central Missouri quickly dashed any hopes of a win by Missouri Western. The final quarter started with a three-pointer from Taylor. She followed with a two-point bucket, giving Central Missouri a 61-52 lead.
After the Griffons scored, Taylor made a nice pass to Fleming, who scored a layup. The Jennies made a stop on defense and got the ball back in Fleming’s hands. She made a three-pointer to increase the lead to 66-54 and force Missouri Western to call timeout with 6:42 left.
“Every time coach puts me in, he says bring some energy, bring some energy,” said Taylor, who finished with 14 points. “If I can do that offensively or defensively, I can help out.”
The break helped the Griffons. They scored the next five points and closed to 66-59. And that’s when another junior stepped up for Central Missouri. Megan Skaggs made a layup and followed with a three-pointer that pushed the Jennies’ lead back to 12 at 71-59 with 4:02 left.
“Just making it a more-possession game for them, it gives us that calming factor and helps us be more poised,” said Skaggs, who finished with 18 points.
The only difference in the first half came on the final play in the second quarter. It started with Paige Redmond handling the ball as the clock ticked down under 10 seconds. Redmond passed it to Taylor, who made a quick pass to Fleming at the top of the key.
Fleming, left wide open, calmly drilled a three-pointer that sent Central Missouri into the locker room with a 36-33 lead.
“I think all those plays when you make the extra pass, gives you more energy, especially when the shot goes down and you go into halftime,” Taylor said. “That was good momentum for us. It gave us confidence on offense that we could pass the ball against their pressure.”
The game was close throughout the first half. The Jennies biggest lead was three points. The first time it occurred was 5-2 after a three-pointer by Redmon.
Missouri Western quickly fought back on a couple of baskets by Roenfeldt and took a 10-7 lead. At the end of the first quarter, the Griffons led 16-14.
The widest margin came midway through the second quarter when Missouri Western built a 24-19 lead after consecutive baskets by Roenfeldt, who scored 14 points in the first half.
Trailing 26-21, Central Missouri scored the next six points for a 27-26 lead. The lead changed two more times before halftime arrived.
“I think we handled their ball pressure well,” Skaggs said. “That is something we have struggled with in the past. We handled that today and took a step forward.”