BALTIMORE - UMBC women's basketball won its second consecutive game, defeating Morgan State 66-48 on the road on Saturday afternoon. The Retrievers have now won back-to-back games against the Lady Bears and improved to 17-13 in the all-time series.
Kennedy Austin and
Jade Tillman posted identical stat lines of 19 points and six rebounds to lead the charge for UMBC. Tillman added three steals and a block, while Austin added an assist and a steal.
The reigning America East Rookie of the Week, Austin scored in double figures for the fifth time this season and third in her last four games to up her scoring average to 13.3 per contest. Saturday also marked Tillman's fifth game of 10 or more points this season, pushing her to 11.8 points per contest this season.
UMBC owned the boards, winning the rebounding battle 56-27 with 27 offensive rebounds in the contest. Seven different Retrievers pulled down at least five rebounds, led by
Alaina Williams with eight.
Maisie Crowley and
Delaney Yarborough joined Tillman and Austin with six boards.
The Retrievers posted a positive assist-to-turnover ratio in the contest, handing out 12 helpers to just 11 turnovers.
Heidi Williams and
Carmen Yánez each had five assists. Yánez sits just one assist shy of 200 for her career.
Defensively, UMBC held Morgan State to less than 10 points in the first (8) and fourth (7) quarters. The Retrievers kept the Lady Bears under 40 percent from the field (37.0) and allowed just three three-point makes.
The Retrievers led wire-to-wire, building a 15-4 advantage late in the first quarter before holding a 17-8 lead after the first period. A late Tillman three in the second would send UMBC to the locker room up by six in the midst of a mini-run from the Bears.
In the third quarter, UMBC used a 16-2 run to break the game open. The Retrievers would lead by as many as 18 in the third before stretching their largest lead of the night to 20 with 4:12 to play in the fourth.
UMBC will look to win a third straight contest on Tuesday night as it plays host to Loyola (Md.) as part of a Black Out doubleheader inside Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena. Tip is scheduled for 8 p.m. after the conclusion of UMBC vs. Buffalo (MBB). 500 free black t-shirts will be handed out for each contest.
