Skyhawks maul Morehead

Sophomore Jasmine Newsome scored 29 points to lead The UTM to an 81-61 victory over host Morehead State tonight in Ellis T. Johnson Arena.

The victory was the first time UTM has won at Morehead since the first round of the 2007 OVC tournament, and it marked the first time the Skyhawks won at Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State since the 1998-98 season.

With the victory, the Skyhawks improved to 11-8 overall and 5-1 in the league. Morehead State falls to 7-12 on the year and 4-3 in the OVC.

The Skyhawks used an 11-2 run in the first half that opened up a contest that was tied twice in the first half at 12-all and then again at 17-17. Newsome scored nine consecutive points in the run for the Skyhawks.

While Newsome scored 16 of her 29 points in the first half, it was UTM's defense that stifled Morehead State. The Eagles turned the ball over on their first three possession of the game, and committed 10 of their 18 turnovers in the first half.

"I thought the key was our defense," UTM head coach Kevin McMillan said. "I thought that was the best defensive game we played."

The Skyhawks also applied pressure on the Eagles beyond the arc. Morehead State was 0-14 from 3-point range in the first half and 2-28 in the game.

At the intermission, UTM led 35-24.

With 9:08 to play in the game, Butler scored her 1,000th career point when she took a long inbounds pass from Taylor Hall and made a layup. The Skyhawks led by 22 points with the layup.

Morehead State was led by Courtney Lumpkin who scored 22 points, half of which came at the free throw line. Ashar Harris tossed in 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. Harris leads the nation in rebounding. Despite Harris, the Skyhawks managed to get 44 rebounds in the game, the same as the Eagles.

"I was really pleased with our defensive effort," McMillan said. "We'll find ways to score but if we play defense and rebound, we're going to be a scary team."

The Skyhawks will return to action Saturday, Jan. 28, when they host Southeast Missouri State at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center.