Lady Toppers handle Christian Brothers 94-43
Western Kentucky freshman guard Jamila Ray (1) moves the ball against a Christian Brothers defender during the Lady Toppers’ 94-43 win Sunday at E.A. Diddle Arena.
(STEVE ROBERTS/WKU Athletics)
It was a confidence building win for the Western Kentucky women’s basketball team, which rolled to a 94-43 win over NCAA Division II Christian Brothers University on Sunday at E.A. Diddle Arena.
Every player in uniform contributed as WKU (2-0) delivered its highest offensive output since scoring 104 against Kentucky State on Nov. 9, 2024.
“You want opportunities to play everyone, you want them to have opportunities,” said WKU head coach Greg Collins. “We were glad to be able to do that. I was really proud of the players that came off the bench and how they performed. They need those chances to make mistakes and not cost a team the ballgame. Christian Brothers played hard, but at the end of the day we were supposed to win this game. The focus wasn’t just on winning the game, the focus was on making sure we were executing what we’re trying to do, whether it was setting a screen or fundamentals. Whatever it might be, we were trying to make sure we were doing a good job executing.”
For the second straight game WKU never trailed, scoring four points in the first minute and pushing the margin to 20-5 after a bucket by Jamila Ray six minutes in. Ray scored 10 straight at one point in the first quarter, continuing her strong start to the season and helping WKU build a 26-11 advantage late in the first.
“It’s really my teammates giving me confidence,” Ray said. “Playing with them gets me more confident. Just playing off each other and feeding off each other makes me open up to get what I need to get.”
Christian Brothers trimmed the deficit to 28-17 to start the second and continued to chip away — with Aaliyah Dias’s basket making the score 33-25 with 5:38 left in the half. Back-to-back 3s from Trinity Rowe and Tatum Boettjer got the Lady Toppers back on track, fueling an 18-2 run that made the score 51-27 at halftime.
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The defense continued to excel in the third quarter — holding Christian Brothers to seven points — with Lola Bond’s three-point play in the final minute making the score 70-34.
With the starters watching from the bench in the fourth, WKU’s bench continued to deliver — outscoring the Buccaneers 24-9 in the final period.
“It was awesome this game to get everybody on the floor,” Boettjer said. “It was really exciting to see everybody actually contribute. We had six returners come back. I think that core six, we know what coach Collins expects. Getting all these newcomers … ready and on the same page, I think this team is a lot better when it comes to here is the goal in mind and we are going to stick to that.”
Ray scored 25 to lead the Lady Toppers in scoring for a second straight game. The freshman finished 8-for-10 from the field and 8-for-11 from the free-throw line, adding six rebounds and four assists.
“I can see a difference today compared to Chattanooga,” Collins said. “I can see a big difference from three weeks ago and it’s not even the same player who was here in June. She’s continued to grow and learn.”
Ellery Mench finished with career highs in points (12) and rebounds (seven). Boettjer added 11 points, with Josie Gilvin tallying 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Every WKU player scored and grabbed at least one rebound, helping the Lady Toppers outrebound Christian Brothers 43-21. The bench accounted for 63 points, the most WKU’s bench has scored since finishing with 66 against Ball State on Dec. 2, 2022.
“We are trying to build to that point where it doesn’t matter,” Collins said. “It’s next man up. There are certain standards, certain things we want to do on defense or offense. We don’t do those well all the time, but that is what we are working towards.”
Defensively, WKU forced 24 turnovers — holding a 37-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
“We’ve done a fairly consistent job of getting points off of turnovers,” Collins said. “That was something that earlier this year when we were doing scrimmages we weren’t. We were creating some turnovers but we weren’t getting anything from them. Now we are doing a better job. That’s something we are working towards. Over the years we’ve been fairly good at creating turnovers, getting steals and getting out in transition. We want to get that box checked off and get that under our belt so we can move on to being better at something else.”
WKU heads out on the road for the first time this season, playing at No. 8 Vanderbilt at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
About Micheal Compton
I am a sports reporter and movie critic for the Bowling Green Daily News.
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