Box Score

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Eastern Kentucky’s women’s basketball team lost a conference game for the first time this season, falling to Tennessee Tech, 75-47, Saturday night in Cookeville. The Lady Colonels fall to 8-7 overall and remain tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference at 5-1.

Talisha Davis led EKU with 14 points. Alex Jones finished with nine points and five rebounds. Cherie White added eight points and five boards.

Kellie Cook scored a game-high 23 for the Golden Eagles (7-8, 2-3 OVC). Tacarra Hayes added 18 and Kylie Cook finished with 13. All three also grabbed eight rebounds each.

TTU out-rebounded Eastern 52-26, including 18 boards off the offensive glass. Tech shot 41.8 percent from the floor and made 10-of-21 three-pointers for 47.6 percent.

Tennessee Tech scored the first 15 points of the game and was posting a shutout at the first media timeout. Kellie Cook scored the first 10 points of the game and 13 of the first 15. She had three three-pointers in the first four and a half minutes of play.

Eastern Kentucky finally got on the board with a pair of free throws by Jones with 15:12 left in the first half, but the Lady Colonels didn’t connect on their first field goal until the 13:06 mark.

EKU got within 10 on a three-pointer by Davis with 7:51, but the Lady Colonels wouldn’t get any closer. Katy Cooke’s basket with 1:46 before halftime pushed the Golden Eagles out in front by 20 points, and TTU took a 20-point advantage into the locker room at the break.

Eastern Kentucky made just 5-of-11 attempts from the free throw line and got out-rebounded by 19 in the first half, including allowing 12 offensive boards.

Seven minutes into the second half, EKU had cut the deficit to 13 but Eastern never got any closer.

The Lady Colonels will return home for four straight games. The home stand begins on Thursday when Eastern Illinois visits McBrayer Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

Notes
Eastern Kentucky committed a season-low 14 turnovers.

The game was a match-up of EKU’s second ranked OVC scoring defense (59.8) and TTU’s fourth ranked OVC scoring offense (64.9).

Tennessee Tech is 5-0 this season when scoring 70 points or more.

Entering the game, EKU’s last four opponents had shot a combined 15.8 percent (9-for-57) from behind the three-point arc. TTU made 10-of-21 for 47.6 percent.

After holding seven of eight opponents to 60 points or less, Eastern Kentucky has given up more than 60 in each of its last two games.

Eastern Kentucky has out-rebounded 10 of its 15 opponents this season, but has been out-rebounded in three of its last five games.

The Lady Colonels’ bench has out-scored their opponents bench in eight straight games.

Tennessee Tech leads the all-time series 56-20 and has won seven of the last nine in the series. EKU is 4-30 all-time in Cookeville.