Lady Red Wolves fold to Mean Green

The women’s basketball team fell to North Texas 53-51 last night.

The Mean Green led 53-48 with 2:37 to go in the game, but the Red Wolves cut the lead to two after a 3-pointer with 1:33 left. Jalen O’Bannon missed a shot with 27 seconds and North Texas controlled the rebound.

With a foul to give, the Mean Green fouled Ashley Olvera before she could get a shot off with eight seconds to play. The Red Wolves turned the ball over on the inbound and the Mean Green ran out the clock to escape with the victory.

Hanna Qedan led ASU with 17 points, including a career-high five 3-pointers, while Morrill finished with 11 points. Jalen O’Bannon grabbed a team-high eight rebounds, while Olvera dished out six assists.

“It was a game of runs and they made the last run when they had to,” head coach Brian Boyer said. “We had a huge to start to the second half and that is probably the most disappointing because we had an eight point lead and we turned it over and it just gave them life and energy.”

ASU refused to go quietly and the Red Wolves took the lead back at 43-40 lead after back-to-back layups from Morrill with 11:06 to play. Carlisha Wyatt gave A-State a 45-43 edge with 6:41 to play, but it would be the last time that ASU would lead in the game.

“These kids really battled to put themselves in a good position and this was a tough one,” Boyer said. “We just have to bounce back and see what happens on Saturday.”

The Red Wolves started the game cold and fell behind 15-7 with 11 minutes to go in the first half, but a 10-0 run gave the Red Wolves their first lead of the game at 17-15 with 6:24 to go in the frame.

Morrill sparked the run with a turnaround jumper in the lane and Qedan followed with her first of three, 3-pointer of the half.

Morrill pulled the Red Wolves within a point after another jumper and McDowell put A-State on top with a steal that she turned into a three-point play on the offensive end.

Qedan finished with 11 first half points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, while McDowell eight first half points.

A-State will travel to Little Rock this Saturday to take on UALR in the regular season finale for both teams. The game is set to tip-off at 4:30 p.m.