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CANCUN, Mexico – Idaho State (3-2) defeated Chattanooga (2-2) Thursday morning 65-62 after being down in double digits in the first half and battling back with an impressive second half. Junior
Kaela Oakes and sophomore
Lindsey Reed led Idaho State with 19 points apiece. Oakes played a major role in the second half scoring 11 points and nabbing a last second steal to seal the victory for the Bengals.
“This definitely was a break out game for Kaela,” ISU Head Coach
Seton Sobolewski said. “She finally found the three-point line. She was aggressive and explosive. She finished strong with the left hand and overall really stood out.”
The Bengals shot 43.9 percent fromb the field overall and 51.7 percent in the second half. ISU rediscovered the three-point shot, hitting six in the game for 37.5 percent. Idaho State's defense came up big again for ISU as the Bengals held Chattanooga to 38.7 percent from the field. Idaho State also beat Chattanooga on the boards, pulling down 40 compared to UTC's 35. ISU also recorded seven steals and shot 9-15 from the free throw line.
In the first, half Chattanooga outscored the Bengals 32-27 off a Lady Mocs 15-point run. Idaho State answered with a 6-2 run in the final three minutes of the half to bring the score back within five. A layup by Reed brought the score to 32-25 and another layup by Horton brought ISU within five at 32-27. Reed led ISU in the first half with 14 points. The Bengals shot just 36 percent from the floor but were saved with a 50 percent three-point shooting average. ISU also went three for six from the free throw line.
In the second half, ISU's shooting from the field improved dramatically as ISU was shooting 54 percent midway through the half. The Bengals attacked the basket early on and a
Jessa Jeppesen layup from
Ashleigh Vella gave ISU the lead 36-35. The Lady Mocs quickly answered but then freshman
Blaire Brady scored her first collegiate bucket to regain the lead for ISU. Oakes then hit back-to-back layups to put ISU up 42-37 and Reed followed up with a fast break layup to give ISU a 44-37 lead.
Chattanooga battled back midway through the half to bring the score to 44-37 but a three-point shot by Reed put ISU back up 47-41. At the five minute mark, ISU held a two point lead. Chattanooga's Whitney Hood hit a shot from the low block to tie it at 55 all. Jeppesen then grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back to put ISU up two. Vella then stole the ball from UTC and dished it off to Oakes for another layup. UTC hit a big three with about two minutes left in the game to narrow ISU's lead to one. Jeppesen put up another layup to give ISU a three-point lead with one minute to go. UTC answered with a layup but Oakes hit a huge jumper to put ISU up 65-62 with 20 seconds left. A UTC turnover gave ISU control with 11 seconds left in the contest. Chattanooga attempted to come back in the final seconds of the game but a wisely timed foul by Vella forced UTC to reset with four seconds in the game. Oakes then nabbed a last second steal to defeat Chattanooga 65-62.
“That was part of the strategy,” Sobolewski said. “The assistant coaches did a good job of identifying that we had foul to give. We told the girls to foul at the half court line if they could. I told them to be aggressive and go for steals and that's what Kaela did.”
Idaho State faces Tulane tomorrow, Friday, Nov. 25 at 10 a.m. MST in the second day of the Cancun Challenge. Tulane (4-0) faces Purdue today.
“Tulane has been lucky to have played a lot at home so far this season,” Sobolewski said. “They are probably feeling very confident after beating LSU and riding pretty high. We are going to have to defend the post and the outside shot. We've got our hands full.”
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