It was a pink out when the Skyhawks downed the Redhawks 75-61 Saturday afternoon. Both teams were decked out in the color to help Zeta Tau Alpha and UTM’s Leaders in Residence to raise money for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.
The crowd who joined in for the afternoon’s first match up was in for a treat as the Skyhawks were looking for a clean sweep against the Redhawks.
“We did a better job on the glass tonight, but we didn’t make it a dominating performance on the glass,” said Coach McMillan. “It was better. We made some mental mistakes we shouldn’t have made.”
Mental mistakes or not, the Skyhawks knew the match was one they couldn’t lose. When the game started and the team took the lead early on, it seemed the game would be a runaway.
But as many teams before them, SEMO began to fight back. The Skyhawks held a nine point lead, but with missed multiple missed 3-pointers and layups, the Redhawks came within two points of the lead. When the buzzer sounded to end the first half, the score was 34-32. Once again, the Skyhawks had squandered the lead.
With the second half underway, the Redhawks tied the game 35-all then took the lead thirty seconds later. The game tied two more times in the second half. After the last tie at 13:05, the Skyhawks took the lead and never looked back. When the game ended, the Skyhawks won 75-61.
When the game started, Jasmine Newsome was only 18 points away from becoming UTM’s second all-time leading scorer. By the end of the first half, Newsome posted 19 points on the board, passing Mary Kate Long for the position. She sits behind her teammate Heather Butler.
Besides earning a new record, Newsome was also the leading scorer of the game with a double-double of 27 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and five assists. Her partner in crime Heather Butler was the runner up with 23 points, two rebounds, two steals and six assists. Seniors Rickiesha Bryant and Shebly Crawford posted 10 and 11 points respectfully. Crawford walked with one assist and five rebounds. Bryant had a double-double with her 10 points, 13 rebounds, one assist and one steal.
The Skyhawks next game is away against Murray State on Saturday Feb. 23. To follow the game, follow The Pacer on Facebook and Twitter, @thepacer.
