LITTLE ROCK — The Tennessee State women's basketball team had three players score in double figures, led by XaiOnna Whitfield, who had 15 points and three steals but fell 67-60 to Little Rock on Thursday.
The Tigers (5-16, 1-10 OVC) got a 23-point showing from the bench. Lyric Cole added 10 points and seven rebounds and Saniah Parker chipped in as well with 10 points.
Aaniya Webb pulled down five offensive rebounds to lead an offense that racked up second chance opportunities for Tennessee State, grabbing 14 boards and turning them into 10 second chance points.
The Tennessee State defense was a problem in Thursday's game, forcing 18 Little Rock turnovers while committing 16. Those takeaways turned into 13 points on the offensive end of the floor. Webb's four steals led the way individually for the Tigers.
How It Happened
After falling behind 15-7, Tennessee State went on a 6-0 run with 2:46 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Webb, to narrow its deficit to 15-13, a score that would hold for the rest of the period.
The Tigers continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 39-25 halftime deficit.
Little Rock continued to increase its lead after halftime, building a 49-31 advantage before Tennessee State went on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Kiki Roberts, to trim its deficit to 49-36 with 1:38 to go in the third. The Tigers were unable to cut further into the deficit, but did not cede ground to Little Rock either and entered the fourth quarter trailing 51-38. Tennessee State played well near the basket, scoring 10 of its 13 points in the paint.
Tennessee State narrowed its deficit to 60-49 before going on a 5-0 run, finished off by Webb's layup, to shrink the deficit to 60-54 with 3:08 to go in the contest. Little Rock responded and outscored the Tigers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 67-60. Tennessee State took advantage of six Little Rock turnovers in the quarter, scoring six points off of those takeaways.
Game Notes
» The Tennessee State bench came alive by scoring 23 points to its scoring output.
» The Tennessee State defense forced 18 turnovers.
» Tennessee State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 14 offensive boards in the game.
» XaiOnna Whitfield led the Tigers with 15 points.
» Tennessee State got a team-high nine rebounds from Aaniya Webb.
