OMAHA, Neb.. -- The Missouri State Lady Bears raced out to an early lead and never looked back Saturday afternoon, topping the preseason Missouri Valley Conference favorite Creighton by an 82-67 score at D.J. Sokol Arena. The Lady Bears shot a season-high .545 (30-of-55) from the field and outscored the 'Jays 44-20 in the paint to earn their third MVC win in four outings.
With the victory the Lady Bears stopped a three-game losing streak in the series with Creighton and a four-game skid versus the Bluejays in Omaha. MSU also climbed into a three-way tie for first place in the Valley standings, equaling CU and Drake with a 3-1 league mark through the first two weekends of the MVC season.
Lacey Boshe was a perfect 7-of-7 from the field to help the Lady Bears build a 48-36 halftime lead, as MSU shot a blistering .643 (18-of-28) from the floor in the half. Boshe, who totaled 15 of her game-high 18 points in the opening half, combined with Christiana Shorter for half of MSU's first-period points.
After falling behind early in each of their last three ballgames, the Lady Bears were the ones to build a first-half double-digit lead this time, racing out to a 12-point advantage in the first six minutes of the contest. Missouri State got its fast start behind a pair of three-pointers from Jaleshia Roberson to build a 13-4 lead just three and-a-half minutes into the contest. MSU would stretch the spread to 20-8 points, as Boshe and Shorter combined for 10 in the opening minutes.
Creighton would slice the lead to seven behind a trio of Sam Schuett threes. CU's Kellie Nelson would also heat up to tally nine first-half points for the 'Jays, who shoot .379 from the floor in the opening 20 minutes of the game.
But the Lady Bears' defense kept the pressure on CU, forcing nine turnovers in the period. MSU would push its lead to as many as 13, and Roberson's third trey of the half with 0:36 left gave the Lady Bears the 12-point edge heading into the break.
Missouri State kept adding to its advantage at the onset of the second stanza, getting a Melissa Busby three-pointer to make it a 55-40 game with just under 16 minutes remaining on the clock. A pair of Shorter field goals, and buckets by Busby and Kendra Roberts stretched the lead to 63-45, MSU's largest of the afternoon.
Preseason Valley Player of the Year pick Megan Neuvirth scored six straight points for CU to draw the Bluejays to within 10 points, but Roberson converted three free throws and Regan Soldner scored on a putback with 7:28 to go to make it a 15-point game again.
The 'Jays would knock down six free throws over the next four minutes, and Kelsey Woodard's three-pointer at the 4:34 mark to pull CU within eight.
But that's as close as the Bluejays would get, as a Casey Garrison bucket off of an offensive rebound with 2:58 left started an 8-2 MSU run that would put the victory on ice. Garrison would add another big basket on the Lady Bears' next possession, and Roberson sank four free throws in the final minute and-a-half to seal MSU's 11th win of the season.
In addition to Boshe's effort, three other Lady Bears finished in double-digits on the afternoon. Shorter and Roberson, who combined to go 13-of-14 from the foul line, each totaled 16 points, while Garrison added 11 points to go along with game-highs of nine rebounds, seven assists and five steals.
Despite being outrebounded by a 38-32 margin, the Lady Bears enjoyed sizable advantages in total points off turnovers (29-7) and fast break scoring (20-0).
CU (8-5, 3-1 MVC) was led by Schuett's 17 points, while Neuvirth and Nelson chipped in with 16 and 15 points, respectively.
The Lady Bears return home to JQH Arena next Saturday (Jan 16) to begin their longest homestand of the conference season against Indiana State at 1:05 p.m.
