A strong second half performance fueled the Lady Bruins to a 66-54 win over the Johnson University Royals on Friday night in the Davis Field House. The Lady Bruins were able to avenge an early season loss as the last time these two teams met the Royals won 70-62. With the win, the Lady Bruins improve to 8-13 on the season.
"We are a different team than we were earlier in the season," Bruins Head Coach Mike LeViere said. "We have improved in a lot of areas and are a lot more balanced."
It was a competitive first half of play despite the Bruins leading for a majority of the first two quarters. The Bruins relied heavily on their defense as they limited the Royals to 29% shooting (18-62) on the night. Still, the Royals rallied late as the Bruins lead 32-30 at halftime.
"Our defense was great tonight," Bruins Guard Rachel Clark said. Clark finished the night with 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. "We stopped the ball and didn't let them drive to the basket, it took them out of the flow of their offense."
In the third quarter the Lady Bruins were able to expand their lead. Halfway through the quarter with BJU holding a 42-39 advantage, Sydney Bedsaul, Rachel Clark, and Sarah Thomsen each hit a three-pointer on three consecutive possessions to grow the lead to 51-39, which capped off a 14-2 scoring run for the team. Thomsen would hit six straight shots in the game as she finished with a team-high 22 points.
"Ball movement was the key to our success offensively," Thomsen said. "It created a lot of open shots for us."
From that point on the Lady Bruins never looked back, as they went on to win the game by the score of 66-54. The team shot just shy of 40% from three-point range while outrebounding the Royals 36-25 in the game.
Next up, the Lady Bruins will return to action Friday night as the team hosts conference opponent Trinity Baptist College. Tip-off is set for 5:00 PM.
