Jennies Roll to 66-42 Win over Northwest Missouri

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Jan. 12, 2017) - Central Missouri led for all but three minutes in their 66-42 win over Northwest Missouri. Unlike their 15-point come-from-behind win in Maryville in December, the Jennies took an early lead and cruised to their 12th win of the season. After six conference games, the Jens are 5-1 and stand at 12-2 overall.

For the second straight game the Jens held an opponent to less than 10 points in a quarter, limiting their Bearcats to only nine first quarter points. The Jennies defense played havoc on Northwest all-night holding them to just 42 points on 15-of-50 (30%) shooting. Both of those are season-bests for the Jennies. The last time the Jennies defense held an opponent to those numbers was also against the Bearcats, in December of 2015, during an 85-39 win.

After some back-and-forth scoring to start the night, Paige Redmond gave the Jennies the lead for good with a layup at the 7:04 mark. That basket was the start of a 15-4 run to end the quarter. Tanya Meyer hit a free throw for the Bearcats to get back to within nine, but Ashley Duffy hit her first three-pointer, putting UCM up 12 and the lead stayed in double-digits the rest of the game. 

Central Missouri shot 42.6% from the floor sinking 26-of-61 field goal attempts. Redmond and Duffy led four Jens in double-figures with 12 points. Sydney Crockett, getting her first start of the season, and Kayonna Lee each scored 10. Kelsey Williams chipped in nine points as nine different Jennies scored.

The Jens struggled from three, tying a season low with only four made three-point field goals, but made up for it shooting 50% from inside the arc (22-for-44). Central Missouri scored 32 of their 66 points in the paint, doubling up on the Bearcats and added 12 points on second-chance opportunities. 

For the 10th time this season, the Jennies won the battle on the glass, outrebounding the Bearcats 40-35, including 13 on the offensive end. Lee led the Jennies finishing just two rebounds shy of a double-double with eight, while Duffy secured seven caroms. Redmond dished out a game-high four assists. The Jens defense came away with eight steals, Lee, Redmond and Megan Skaggs each had two. Those eight steals helped the Jennies score 22 points off of 17 Bearcat turnovers.

Central Missouri pulled away in the second half, outscoring NWMSU 19-11 in the third quarter. Duffy and Crockett each hit a three in the final minute of the period. Macy Williams sunk a three for Northwest with 7:35 to go, and the Bearcats went cold the rest of the game, scoring just two more points on 1-of-7 shooting.

Meyer led all scorers with 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bearcats. It's her second double-double of the season against the Jennies.

Central Missouri's next game has been moved because of inclement weather in the forecast for Saturday. The Jennies will now take on Missouri Western Monday, Jan. 16 with a 3 p.m. tip-off. These two teams met in St. Joseph, Mo. in December with the Jens coming away with a 66-58 win.