CHICKASHA, Okla. -- Freshman Natalie Smith scored a career-high 21 points and sophomore Tarrah Stephens added 17, but the John Brown University women's basketball team couldn't erase a tough shooting start as the Golden Eagles fell by an 86-62 final to Science & Arts (Okla.) in the Sooner Athletic tournament quarterfinals on Tuesday (Feb. 23) night inside the Drover Fieldhouse.
Hitting 8-of-14 from the field and five triples, Smith came off the bench to provide her career-best output, helping out Stephens, who shouldered the rest of the offensive burden – to the tune of 18 field goal attempts, converting on seven.
A 3-of-14 start to the night from the floor placed the Golden Eagles (5-6) in the early deficit, which was compounded by seven turnovers over the first 12 minutes of the contest. Then, the visitors found some rhythm with a 24-12 run of its own over the final 8:17 of the second quarter – pulling within eight points at the intermission.
Late in the third quarter, junior Marta Matamala, junior Maddie Altman, Stephens and Smith each contributed buckets in a little 8-2 spurt that brought John Brown all the way back within six points, 52-46. Smith added another triple to open the final period, making the score 58-51, but a 12-0 USAO run over the next 3:37 ended John Brown's hopes of completing the comeback.
Matamala's 10 rebounds accounted for one-third of JBU's effort on the glass, as the visitors shot just 38 percent from the floor (24-of-64) and surrendered 24 points off 16 miscues. Science & Arts also controlled the paint, to the tune of a 54-30 margin.
Zaria Dorsey's 31 points on 14-of-18 shooting from the field easily led all scorers. Milagros Carrera (20 points) and Kaytlen Johnson (12 points) joined Dorsey as the Drovers' double-digit scorers.
Although shooting an abysmal 3-of-22 from behind the arc (14 percent), USAO hit nearly 61 percent of its attempts inside arc – and finished 37-of-78 (47 percent) overall from the field.
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