The struggling Billikens (2-6) dropped yet another closely-contested match, this time in a game to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. On Monday, Dec. 5., Saint Louis University fell to the Badgers in the evening tilt 48-46.
“We don’t believe in moral victories, so it’s tough to lose this one,” Head Coach Shimmy Gray-Miller said.
“We prepared to win and came in expecting to win. It’s disappointing, but I’m extremely proud of our effort. The only way I could possibly be any prouder of our players is if we had won the game.”
SLU commanded the offensive boards in the match. They held a 21-6 advantage in the category. Six-foot forward Lorreal Jones was one of the key components to that overwhelming edge and a bright spot for the Billikens in the loss. The sophomore Detroit native posted her second consecutive double-double. Jones registered a game- and career-high 16 rebounds and chipped in 13 points.
She also went after the ball on the defensive end, recording a career-high three steals. SLU has outrebounded the Badgers 45-33 and all eight of their foes this season.Jones currently leads the Atlantic 10 Conference in rebounding and offensive rebounding. Junior Mallory Eggert netted a season-high 10 points and collected seven rebounds (four offensive), and Kim Bee equaled her season best with eight rebounds. Desirae Ball scored eight points, while Janisha Gearlds tallied a game-high five assists and tied her season rebounding high of five. Gearlds moved past Julie Goessling into sixth place on SLU’s career assists chart.
The Billikens’ ability to compete with the Badgers could be credited to their careful ball control. They recorded a season-low 11 turnovers. Taylor Wurtz scored a game-high 16 points, including 11 in the second half, and gathered nine rebounds for Wisconsin (4-5). Ashley Thomas had 14 points and seven rebounds. After SLU expanded a 22-17 halftime lead to 26-19 on baskets by Jones and Ball to start the second half, Wisconsin used a 24-10 run to take a 43-36 lead.
Cassie Rochel scored what proved to be Wisconsin’s final points for a 48-42 advantage at the 2:42 mark.
Gearlds drove the lane for a layup, and, after a Wisconsin miss, Jones took advantage of a SLU offensive rebound and nailed a jumper from the right wing to close the gap to 48-46 with 1:11 remaining. The Badgers left the door open for a Billiken comeback over the final 71 seconds, after missing a series of bonus foul shots, but SLU was unable to capitalize.
The Billikens now travel to Boca Raton, Fla., to face Florida Atlantic University Saturday, Dec. 10. Tip time is 2 p.m. (CT).
