SWAC WBB Quarterfinals: Texas Southern eases past Alabama State
SWAC.org
#2 Texas Southern 70, #7 Alabama State 42
HOUSTON – Newly-crowned Player of the Year Joyce Kennerson scored 27 points and dished four assists as No. 2 seed Texas Southern cruised past No. 7 seed Alabama State 70-42 during the quarterfinal round of the 2018 Toyota Southwestern Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament at HPE Arena.
Texas Southern (19-11) opened the contest on a 10-3 run as keyed by Kennerson and Kaitlyn Palmer. However, Alabama State regrouped, limiting TSU to one basket over the final 4:26 of the frame. Courtney Lee knocked down a trey with 47 ticks left to make the game 12-10 Lady Tigers at the end of one.
Lee buried another from deep to briefly give the Lady Hornets (8-22) a 13-12 lead, but Palmer scored four quick points to spark an 8-3 run for the Lady Tigers, who went into the break up 23-19.
Texas Southern’s offense came alive in the second half, as the defending SWAC Tournament Champion outscored Alabama State 47-23 in the third and fourth quarters. TSU managed to push its lead to as many as 11 in the third, during which Kennerson scored 10 points. The Lady Tigers pulled away with a dominating 26-7 scoring advantage in the decisive frame.
Kenya Pye led Alabama State with 11 points. Texas Southern limited Alabama State to a 32-percent clip from the field (16-of-50) while knocking down 44.7 percent (21-of-47) from the field.
TSU forced Alabama State into 22 turnovers, and outshot the Lady Hornets from the line to the tune of 26-of-42 from the stripe, compared to the visitors’ 6-for-8 ledger from the line.