EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- Casey Garrison scored 10 of her game-high 23 points during a key second-half scoring run to propel the Missouri State Lady Bears past SIU Edwardsville, 76-60, Tuesday evening at the Vadalabene Center. Garrison combined with fellow sophomore guard Jaleshia Roberson for 43 points, as MSU won its fourth straight game and completed its best non-conference season in six years.
After SIUE converted 12 of its first 14 field goal attempts of the second half to nearly erase a 13-point deficit and pull to within 48-45, Roberson sparked a 21-6 scoring spurt for the Lady Bears by draining her third three-pointer of the evening. Garrison followed by scoring eight of MSU's next 10 points to push the Lady Bear advantage back to double-digits.
The Lady Bears were red-hot from the foul line all night, converting 20-of-21 (.952) attempts, and MSU made SIUE pay from the stripe when it mattered most. MSU would hit 7-of-8 free throws in the final 5:18 to stretch the margin to as many as 18, and the Cougars would get no closer than 15 points the rest of the way.
Missouri State was able to withstand the Cougars' second-half charge by hitting 16 of its 27 (.593) field goal attempts. Garrison led the way, totaling 23 points by going 8-of-11 from the field and 6-of-6 at the foul line. She would also finish with a team-high seven rebounds.
Roberson was also hot from the field, tallying 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including a 3-of-6 effort from beyond the arc.
With their fourth consecutive win, the Lady Bears wrapped up their most successful non-conference slate since going 9-1 in 2003-04. The four-game win streak also matches MSU's longest under head coach Nyla Milleson.
Despite a sluggish start on the offensive end of the court, the Lady Bears took a 27-16 lead over the Cougars into the halftime locker room. MSU committed 17 of its 22 turnovers in the opening period, but used a 20-4 scoring run to turn a three-point deficit into a double-digit lead.
It was the Lady Bear defense that was key early on, limiting the Cougars to just 7-of-27 (.259) shooting from the field while forcing 16 SIUE turnovers in a ragged half of basketball.
SIUE led 8-5 with just under 14 minutes to play in the half when Melissa Busby kicked off the critical run with a three-pointer from the right wing. Roberson would knock down a trey of her own with 10:25 to go to push the margin to 11, then convert a jumper on MSU's next possession to run the lead to 21-8.
Springfield native Danielle Bennett and freshman Raven Berry each scored 14 points to lead the Cougars, who fell to 2-11 on the season.
Next up, Missouri State returns to JQH Arena to open Missouri Valley Conference play next Thursday (Dec. 31) against Bradley in a 1:05 p.m., contest.
