JONESBORO, Ark. - Needing five extra minutes in overtime, Appalachian State University women's basketball (9-13, 4-7 SBC) outlasted Arkansas State (5-18, 3-8 SBC) in a crucial 81-72 victory on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro.
The win for App snaps a four-game slide while earning a season sweep over Arkansas State and the first-ever victory on the Red Wolves' home floor. App's 81 points scored ties a season high and is the most points it has scored in conference play.
App outscored the hosts,18-9, in overtime while hitting its final six shots en route to finishing 6-for-7 from the floor. Defensively, after A-State had hit four trifectas in the fourth quarter, Appalachian held the Red Wolves to 1-for-5 from beyond the arc in the extra period and 3-for-9 overall from the floor.
The final 22 points by App State including all 18 points in overtime were scored by Q. Murray, Madi Story and Joi Jones.
The trio of Murray (25), Story (25) and Jones (15) combined for 65 of the Mountaineers' 81 points and hit 25 of the 31-made field goals.
Murray's scoring output was a career-high for the redshirt sophomore, and Story led the team with a game-high nine boards.
Appalachian got off to a good start in first quarter with a 16-12 lead going into the secon period. With the game tied at 9-all, App scored seven of the last 10 points for the four-point advantage. Bayley Plummer retrieved a pass for a layup from Murray before scoring the next five points to end the quarter. A-State's Brittany Fowler hit one of her three treys to cut a seven-point App lead to four.
Arkansas State shot 57.1 percent from the field in the second frame while holding App to 5-for-17 shooting from the field en route to a 33-30 lead at the break. The Red Wolves outscored App, 21-14, in the quarter highlighted by a 14-0 run when Appalachian was leading 26-19. While trailing 33-26, Jones and Murray hit back-to-back layups to cut the gap to just one possession going into the break.
Within the first 43 seconds of the second half and App trailing 35-33, Bria Carter sparked a 10-1 run over the next 3:50 put Appalachian ahead, 43-36. The Black and Gold held A-State scoreless for 2:08 during the run while Jones and Murray scored the next six points followed by a layup from Carter.
However, Arkansas State didn't go away lightly staying on the Apps' heels dwindling the lead to a possession before the fourth quarter, 48-46.
The Mountaineers stayed in front for majority of the fourth quarter until A-State went on a 5-0 spurt to take a 60-57 lead with 3:17 left in the game. Ashley Bassett-Smith (Pickerington, Ohio/UT Martin) hit a key jumper to cut the lead to one followed by jumpers from Story and Jones.
Dominique Oliver hit a 3-pointer with 1:26 left in the game to knot the score to 63-all. App had a chance to win with two shots but couldn't convert in the end.
Fowler started the overtime frame with a trifecta to put A-State ahead, 66-63, but the Apps dug deep to finish the game with the 18-6 run to clinch the win.
App dominated A-State on the glass, 48-36, including 21 offensive rebounds that resulted in 17 second-chance points. The Mountaineers suffocated the Red Wolves into 20 turnovers for 28 points, and App held an impressive 48-26 effort in points in the paint.
Appalachian will seek to build off the win against archrival Georgia Southern on Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. in the Holmes Center.
Quotable:
“We're really proud of our team today for its consistency and commitment to rebounding the basketball. Our execution in overtime was outstanding, and give credit to Madi (Story) and (Q.) Murray for taking and making big shots for us. This was a great win on the road for our team. - Angel Elderkin
Tip-Ins
- Appalachian is 2-1 under coach Elderkin in overtime, and it's the first overtime win on the road since defeating Davidson on Feb. 24, 2014, 72-70.
- In a battle of two of the top three teams in pace according to natstat.com, App State recorded 83 possessions while A-State finished with 81.
- Jones led the team in plus/minus at +17.
- Story (44 minutes), Murray (43 minutes) and Carter (40 minutes) all reached career highs in minutes played.
- Story led the team in Player Efficiency Rating (PER) at 29 while Murray (22) and Jones (13) followed suit.
- In two games against Arkansas State, the Apps outscored the Red Wolves, 102-53, in the paint.
- App also scored 57 points off of turnovers in two games against the Red Wolves and held a 46-18 advantage in second-chance points.
- Story and Murray are the first teammates to each score 20 since Jones (21) and Jones (20) both reached the 20-plateau last season against Furman on Dec. 12, 2015.
