The Lady Toppers (5-0) led early against North Dakota (2-3), but gave up the lead in the second quarter. WKU bounced back in the second half with a 13-0 run at the beginning of the third quarter to retake the lead and held on for the win.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A jumper from Destiny Salary got scoring underway in the game. After a pair of North Dakota free throws, WKU rattled off an 8-0 run to take an early 10-2 lead. From there, scoring was nearly even with WKU taking a 14-12 advantage through the remainder of the quarter.
After scoring 24 points in the first quarter, the Lady Toppers went cold in the second. Their first points of the frame didn't come until the 3:28 mark and it followed a 13-0 run from the Fighting Hawks. Overall, North Dakota outscored WKU 20-7 in the period and took a 34-31 lead into halftime.
The Fighting Hawks extended their lead to open the second half with a pair of free throws. The Lady Toppers responded with a 13-0 run to go back ahead by eight and would not trail the rest of the game. North Dakota tied the game twice in the third quarter, but WKU held them off and took a 51-49 lead into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, WKU outscored North Dakota 23-20 to secure the win. With 1:39 left in the game, the Lady Toppers took a seven-point lead on a layup from Zsophia Telegdy. The Fighting Hawks scored four straight to cut the lead down to three with 47 seconds left. After a WKU turnover, North Dakota had a chance to tie the game but missed a three and turned the ball over to Alexis Mead after an offensive rebound. The Fighting Hawks fouled Acacia Hayes with nine seconds left who made both free throws to ice the game.
NOTABLES
- Alexis Mead became the 43rd member of the Lady Topper 1,000 Point Club during the game. She's the first to reach 1,000 career points since Meral Abdelgawad during the 2021-22 season. Mead finished with 14 points marking her fourth straight game in double figures. She pulled down a season high six boards.
- Acacia Hayes led WKU in scoring with 21 points, her second 20-point performance of the season. She has a streak of four games in double figures and has made at least three 3-pointers in three of five games this season.
- Destiny Salary added 11 points and had a season high three steals and three assists.
- Mackenzie Chatfield had a perfect shooting night, going 4-4 from the field and 2-2 from beyond the arc.
- Josie Gilvin led WKU on the boards for the second time this season, pulling down seven rebounds.
- The Lady Toppers made a season high 12 threes in the game. It was the most WKU has made since making 12 at Vanderbilt last season.
- WKU has not given up more than 69 points this season. The Lady Toppers are 86-24 under Greg Collins when holding teams below 70.
- WKU improves to 91-7 under Collins when leading with 5:00 minutes left to play.
- The Lady Toppers are now 2-1 against North Dakota all-time.
QUOTABLE
Head coach Greg Collins:
"We got off to a really good start also at Abilene Christian and then we made some mistakes and that happened again tonight. I thought we were pretty good with that 10-point lead and then we made some mistakes and they got back in the game and then we had to fight our way the rest of the game. I was proud of the resiliency. We fought some foul trouble. We got our butt handed to us on the boards tonight. We've been doing a better job, but tonight they (North Dakota) were clearly more physical and more determined. We have work to do there. But I'm proud of how they kept fighting and kept believing."
Junior guard Acacia Hayes:
"Staying together (helped us tough the game out). There were moments in the first half when we got out of ourselves and out of the way we play. We just kept telling each other that we had to come together and pull a win out."
Senior guard Alexis Mead:
"I think it was really good for the team (that we made some big plays late in the game), but we need to be good enough to not be in that position at the end of the game. To where once we get a lead and he (Coach Collins) makes substitutions we're not having any type of drop off."
NEXT UP
The Lady Toppers will continue their homestand with Tennessee State on Wednesday, Nov. 27 at 4 p.m. WKU is offering discounted tickets for families looking for Thanksgiving week plans. Fans can purchase four tickets for $20. The offer is call-in only. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 1-800-5-BIGRED.
How to Follow the Lady Toppers: For complete information on Lady Topper Hoops, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @LadyTopperHoops on X, @LadyTopperHoops on Instagram and on Facebook at facebook.com/WKUWomensBasketball.
