CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky.– #3 Lady Tiger Basketball hit the road to face off against the #1 Thomas More Saints Thursday afternoon. Campbellsville withstood Thomas More's first quarter onslaught but ultimately they couldn't overtake them, losing in a 78-66 score.
Going in to the contest, the Saints were top-ten in the NAIA is three-point percentage and they proved it in no time. Campbellsville fell short early in the game as Thomas More simply couldn't miss, going 78% from the field in the opening ten minutes. Thomas More's baskets, accompanied by the Lady Tigers' missed shots, resulted in a hefty deficit as the first quarter ended.
As the second quarter kicked off, Campbellsville suffered a 13-point discrepancy.
Courtney Pritchett closed the gap to ten points with her three-point basket.
Kayla Luebbe reigned in the Lady Tigers' shortfall to a single digit with her clean layup. Campbellsville's defense kept the Saints off from scoring further until Thomas More came out of a timeout firing shots. With a second remaining in the first half, Pritchett pulled up with a jumper to keep the Lady Tigers trailing by five.
Half-time comparisons leaned in Thomas More's favor. Campbellsville shot 38.5 percent in field goals, whereas the Saints ammassed a 55.6 percent. From the three-point line, the Lady Tigers shot a paltry 23.1 percent (well-below their top-five season average) as Thomas More acquired 58.3 percent. Although Campbellsville led with 20 rebounds to the Saints' 16, the Lady Tigers weren't finding their shots falling.
In the third, Wilks went in with a layup to close the gap between the Lady Tigers and the Saints. Wilks went to the board again to bring things within one point. Campbellsville stood their ground as they outscored Thomas More within the quarter but could not outscore them enough to tie the game or take the lead. Even so, the Saints struggled to keep the Lady Tiger paint-players (Luebbe and Wilks) from hounding the basket.
In the final quarter, Thomas More opted to guard Campbellsville's post players heavily to stop the Lady Tigers' momentum. Opportunities to make offensive moves presented themselves to Campbellsville through turnovers and shots at the charity stripe. However, the Lady Tigers were not able to capitalize on the opportunities. The Lady Tigers missed four chances at gaining ground with shots that simply didn't convert. Nevertheless,
Elizabeth Bertram took a three to shorten Campbellsville's trail. Bertram made another shot from the arc after that, but Thomas More did not let up as they continued to knock down baskets in response. The horn sounded to a double-digit loss for the Lady Tigers, their first concession of the season.
The Saints outshot Campbellsville in field goals, three-pointers, and free throws. Thomas More averaged a 50.8 field goal percentage, while the Lady Tigers marked 43.8 percent. Thomas More acquired 46.4 percent from the arc as Campbellsville mustered up 28.6 percent. The Lady Tigers went 4-8 from the stripe while the Saints knocked down every one of their five free throws. Wilks collected 19 points for Campbellsville as Bertram trailed with 13, and Luebee had ten points off the bench.
Bailey Pedigo captured nine rebounds, and Pritchett tallied six assists.
The Lady Tigers will return to the hardwood this Saturday, January 7
th. Campbellsville will match-up against Wilberforce university at Powell Athletic Center. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. ET, and the men's game is to follow.
