ST. LOUIS - The Spartans came out firing against UHSP in their second matchup of the season and held a marginal lead over the Eutectics throughout the contest on their way to a 79-59 win, in which five Spartans tallied double digit points.
In the first eight minutes of the contest the Spartans played tough defense only allowing four points and their offense was getting the job done with 20 points on the other end. Missouri Baptist held a 24-8 lead over UHSP at the end of the first frame. Mariana Cubero and Riley Jansen each posted six points in the quarter.
The Spartans continued to grow their lead throughout the half as they increased it to 22 points at halftime with the score at 43-21.
Aliyah Williams became the leading scorer at the break with 10 points and she was trailed shortly behind by Sophia Horton with nine of her own. Missouri Baptist shot 60 percent in the first half and 50 percent from beyond the arc. They were also dominating the paint battle, outsourcing the Eutectics 22-6 in the lane. Cubero had also racked up seven boards throughout the first 20 minutes of the AMC contest.
The third quarter was the Spartans lowest scoring frame out of the four as they scored 17, but still outpaced UHSP by one point, extending their lead to 23 points. The Eutectics won the fourth quarter, but just by three points and the Spartans were able to pick up their second win over the Eutectics this season 79-59.
Cubero finished with a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Horton and Williams led the squad with 16 points each.
Missouri Baptist shot 48.3 percent from the field and totaled 42 points in the paint against the Eutectics.
Spartan Stat Leaders
Points: Horton & Williams (16)
Rebounds: Cubero (11)
Blocks: Cubero (3)
Steals: Williams (4)
Assists: Cubero (4)
Records
Missouri Baptist: 6-16 (6-10 AMC)
UHSP: 6-16 (6-10 AMC)
Next Game
The Spartans will stay at home for another AMC matchup this Saturday against Stephens College at 1:00 p.m., looking to even the season series against the Stars in the Petty SRC.
