COLUMBIA, Mo. – Another valiant effort against a top-ranked squad was in the cards for the Missouri Baptist University women's basketball team on Thursday evening. The Spartans were unable to stage an upset, but played the No. 2 Columbia Cougars tough on the road in an 81-69 loss at Southwell Complex.
In fact, the Spartans scored the first five points of the game and finished the first quarter with an 18-16 lead. The next period proved to be turning point for Columbia though. Against a veteran-laden squad that is undefeated at home this season, there was very little room for error. The Cougars could not be stopped from 3-point range with 21 out of their 27 second-quarter points coming from beyond-the-arc.
MBU did everything in its power to not let the Cougars out of sight and did so with a strong half of offensively. The Spartans shot 14-for-29 (.482) through two quarters and trailed the NAIA's No. 2-ranked team by seven at halftime.
In the third, Columbia stretched its lead early to as much as 14. Missouri Baptist rode the hot hand of senior
Kadesha Cooper, who went off for 11 points in the quarter. The Prattsville, Ark. native tied her season high in scoring with 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the floor. It marked Cooper's eighth game in double figures and second with 20+ points.
Overall, the offensive output slowed down after halftime as the Spartans shot just 33 percent (8-for-24) the rest of the way. Nearly half of MBU's second-half points ended up coming from the free-throw line converting on 16 of its 18 attempts.
For the game, the Spartans shot 77.8 percent from the free-throw line (21-of-27), 41.5 percent from the field, but just 28.6 from the 3-point line. On the glass, they out-rebounded the Cougars 35 to 28.
Joining Cooper in double figures was
Le'Ondra Wilson, who was one point shy of her career best. Wilson finished with an impressive stat line of 14 points (5-of-9), 2-of-3 from 3-point range, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 assist.
Looking to snap a six-game losing streak, Missouri Baptist (3-11, 2-8 AMC) now has an easier stretch than playing the No. 1 and No. 2 team back-to-back. The Spartans have a three-game homestand beginning on Saturday (weather permitting) against Hannibal-LaGrange University. Due to winter storms in the forecast, stay tuned to MBUSpartans.com and MBU Athletics on social media for updates on Saturday's contest.
