FINAL BOX

NASHVILLE, Tenn.- The Tennessee State women's basketball team closed out the Teresa Phillips Thanksgiving Classic with a 58-40 victory over North Alabama on Sunday at the Gentry Center. 

The Lady Tigers (3-3) had four players score in double-digits in Sunday's match-up. Jayda Johnson led TSU with her second double-double of the season, notching 14 points and 11 rebounds. Brianna Lawrence and Diamond Beatty followed, collecting 12 points apiece. Lawrence matched her career-high eight steals in the contest. I'mani Davis had her first double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

North Alabama (1-5) was led by Elise Holden, who recorded a team-high 11 points and six rebounds for the Lions.

Multiple steals in the opening minutes of the game allowed the Lady Tigers to jump out to an early 10-0 lead. Defensive pressure from TSU kept the Lions off the board until the 5:03 mark, when North Alabama sank its only shot of the quarter. The Lady Tigers would tack on four more points before the end of the first extending their lead, 14-2, before heading into the second.

An 8-2 run, triggered by TSU fouls, would give the Lions a chance to cut their 12-point deficit in half (16-10). The Lady Tigers battled back with a 6-2 run of their own, highlighted by 3-pointers from Davis and Beatty, to extend their lead to 22-12 before forcing UNA into its second timeout of the quarter. The Lady Tigers would fall victim to fouls once again, allowing the Lions to outscore them 6-3 in the remaining minutes of the second quarter, making the score 25-18 going into the break. 

The teams went back and forth at the start of the third, with both teams scoring four points apiece before the media timeout. A shot beyond the arc from Beatty would give the Tigers a 10-point lead (32-22), but two back-to-back 3's from UNA allowed the Lions to close the gap and make it a four-point game. The Lady Tigers took advantage of UNA turnovers to outscore the Lions 11-6 in the final minutes of the third quarter for a 43-34 lead heading into the fourth. 

TSU kept the pressure on in the final quarter, outscoring the Lions 15-7 to secure the victory.  

The Lady Tigers held a 43-31 rebounding edge and forced the Lions into 28 turnovers on the afternoon.

The Lady Tigers are back in action on Tuesday, Dec. 1, when they host Lane College at 6 p.m. Prior the game, TSU will hold a ring ceremony, where last year's squad will receive their Ohio Valley Conference Championship rings.

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