SMU Women Win 10th Straight
DALLAS (SMU) – The Mustangs went on a 17-5 run, including 13 unanswered points over almost 10 minutes in the second half on the way to a 67-50 victory over Marshall for the 10th straight win, the second longest streak in program history. Keena Mays led the way with 17 points, going 4-for-8 from 3-point range. SMU remained unbeaten in Conference USA with the win, improving to 9-0 in the league and 18-4 overall.
The junior transfer also had five rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block, and Akil Simpson recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds, making six of 10 attempts from the floor. She also had three assists, two blocks and a steal in front of the third largest crowd in Moody Coliseum this year, aided by a few hundred student-athletes who showed up for SAAC’s Pack the House.
SMU got off to a slow start, scoring just seven points in the first 8:59, but then Mays hit 3’s on back-to-back possessions to tie the game 13-13 with 10:29 left in the first half. Kristin Askew nailed a 3 on the next possession, giving the Mustangs a 16-13 lead, and SMU never trailed again. By the time the halftime buzzer sounded, the lead was eight, 31-23.
Marshall (7-15, 1-8 C-USA) scored eight of the first 10 points in the second half to cut the lead to two, 33-31 with 14:52 left, but SMU held the Thundering Herd to just five points over the next 9:48 to take a 60-36 lead. The run included a 13-0 scoring spree by the Mustangs over a four-minute stretch.
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The Mustangs shot 40 percent for the game, making 24 of 60 shots, including seven of 16 from 3-point range, 43.8 percent. Marshall connected on 19 of 64 attempts, 29.7 percent, and made just four of 22 3-point attempts, 18.2 percent. SMU forced the Thundering Herd into 15 turnovers with 10 steals, scoring 18 points off turnovers. Marshall is the seventh team SMU has held to 50 or fewer points this season.
SMU starts a two-game road trip at East Carolina Thursday at 6 p.m. CT. The Mustangs play at Memphis Sunday at 2 p.m. before returning to Moody Coliseum on Feb. 21 to host Tulsa.
