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Photo Gallery (by
Sandy King)
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Eastern Illinois Panthers (5-7, 3-4 OVC) had one of their best defensive outings of the season, holding the Morehead State Eagles (2-8, 1-4 OVC) to 32.7% from the field on the game. Eastern Illinois won 65-50 on Thursday night against the Eagles. This is Eastern Illinois' second win-in-a-row in conference play, and it comes at a crucial time.
Lariah Washington led EIU in scoring with 17 points and recorded four of the Panthers' 15 steals for the game. The Panthers will return to Lantz Arena on Saturday, Jan. 16, at 1 p.m.
QUICK FACTS
- Karle Pace moves to the No. 15 spot in career-points with 1,266 total-points.
- Kira Arthofer, Karle Pace, and Lariah Washington each recorded four steals during the game.
- 15 steals ties the season-high for most in a single game this season. (EKU, Dec. 30)
- 32.7% from the field is the lowest shooting-percentage that an EIU opponent has finished the game with.
QUARTER-BY-QUARTER
The first quarter was a defensive battle between the two teams; both finished shooting under 40% in the quarter. The Panthers held the lead throughout the majority of the quarter, but two 3-pointers in the final minute by Morehead State's Tyler Moore gave the Eagles the lead. Morehead State led, 15-12.
Back-to-back 3-pointers seemed to be a trend, as Pace came out with two of her own to swing the momentum back towards the Panthers. Those 6 points put Pace at No. 15 on the career-points list passing JoAnn Archer. Wahl was immovable down low, scoring in the paint with efficiency. She finished the quarter with 6 points, tying her for the quarter-high, with Pace being her counterpart. Eastern Illinois finished the quarter with six assists as they found each other in transition with ease. Panthers led, 31-25.
Arthofer led the way in scoring for the Panthers in the third quarter, finishing with 6 points. Both teams struggled from the field in the quarter, but Morehead State got the best of the Panthers just slightly. The Eagles outscored the Panthers 16- 15 in the quarter. Panthers still led, 46-41.
Eastern Illinois blew the lead wide-open in the final quarter of play. Washington put up 6 points in the quarter to lead EIU, with Wahl not far behind with 5 points. The Panthers shot nearly 54% from the field in the quarter and outscored the Eagles 19-9. EIU picked up their third-conference-win, with the majority of the production coming in the second half of play. Panthers won, 65-50.