Sunday, Dec. 6

Memphis 72, Liberty 67
Northern Iowa 93, Wichita State 91 (2OT)	Box Score
Florida Gulf Coast 78, Temple 69	Box Score

Highlights

Memphis 72, Liberty 67

Trailing by two with under four minutes to play, Memphis women's basketball used an 11-0 run to spark a 72-67 come-from-behind victory against Liberty on Sunday evening at Elma Roane Fieldhouse. 

Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu had 23 points and 14 rebounds while Madison Griggs scored 16 to lead Memphis (1-2) in its first win of the young season. Six of Griggs' 16 points came within the last two minutes of play to help the Tigers complete the comeback bid. Freshmen also played a role in tonight's win as both Callie Wright and Coriah Beck were able to make scoring contribution against the Liberty Lady Flames.

To open the first period, the Lady Flames came out on fire. Liberty's Emily Lytle forced a foul by Griggs and went 2-2 at the free throw line to get the first points on the board. The Lady Flames' fast style of play posed a threat for Memphis, but the Tigers did not let that keep them out of the game. The Tigers shot 75% from the free throw line, which accounted for six of the 10 points scored in the first period. At the end of the quarter, Liberty led 13-10.

Two layups by Fankam Mendjiadeu early in the second period helped close the scoring margin to just one point. A jumper by Griggs gave Memphis a 16-15 lead with 6:58 left on the clock. Liberty's Audrey Clark had a three-pointer halfway through the period, which propelled the score to 20-16. Memphis immediately answered with back-to-back layups by forwards Wright and Fankum Mendjiadeu to tie the game 20-20. Memphis and Liberty both followed up with made threes to keep the game tied at 23-23 with 3:47 left on the clock. By the end of the half, Memphis led 27-25.

"I think that this is the Dulcy that we're going to see for the rest of the year," said Memphis head coach Melissa McFerrin. "We're going to see people crowding her, doubling her, just really trying to make her life difficult and she's going to continue to grow because she's going to have to manage that."

Early in the second half, both teams went back and forth with scoring to keep the game tied for the first two minutes of play. A three-pointer by Griggs gave the Tigers a 36-33 lead with 7:48 left on the clock. A layup and one by junior guard Jatjia 'Tye" Jones expanded the Tigers' lead to 38-33 soon after. 

A three by Liberty's Ashtyn Baker tied the game 41-41 with 5:31 left in the period. The Lady flames followed up with two layups, which opened the scoring margin by four points. Fankam Mendjiadeu went 1-2 at the free throw line followed by a layup from sophomore forward Lanetta Williams to bring the score to 45-44 with 2:36 left on the clock. Both teams spent the remainder of the period going shot for shot, but Liberty ended up leading 49-48 by the end.

To open the final period, Fankam Mendjiadeu went 2-2 at the free throw line followed by a layup to give the Tigers a 52-49 lead. With 5:09 left on the clock, Liberty briefly took over the lead with a three by Lytle but a Fankum Mendjiadeu jumper tied the game 56-56. With just under two minutes left of play, a three by Griggs put the Tigers ahead 63-58. Another three by Wilson extended Memphis to a 66-58 lead. 

Griggs went 2-2 at the free throw line with just over a minute left on the clock, but Liberty immediately came back with two consecutive three-pointers by Alyssa Iverson and Lytle in the last seven seconds of regulation to bring the score to 70-67. A foul by Liberty's Nenna Linstorm sent Wilson to the free throw line where she went 2-2- to cement the Tiger's first victory of the season.

"I was really proud of our team today," said McFerrin, "Tonight our kids were very excited, they managed the clock well at the end of the game and we just really played the game the right way today."

Northern Iowa 93, Wichita State 91 (2OT)

Wichita State erased a 16-point fourth quarter deficit to force two overtime periods before Northern Iowa came away with a 93-91 win Sunday night in Charles Koch Arena.

UNI's Megan Maahs' layup with three seconds remaining in the second overtime lifted the Panthers in an all-time great battle between two programs with a lot of history. Wichita State (3-1) ends up in the losing column for the first time this season, and gives UNI six straight wins in the series.

Asia Strong scored 20 of her season and game-high 22 points after halftime, while also pulling down a season-high 13 rebounds. It is her first career double-double. As much as Strong dominated the second half, it was all Trajata Colbert in the first half. Colbert recorded 14 of her career-high 21 points in the first 20 minutes. She finished 9-for-14 from the field to go with five rebounds.

Rachel Johnson also set a new season best with 17 points – 12 after halftime – on 6-of-8 shooting. Seraphine Bastin added 16 points and eight rebounds.

Wichita State finished the game shooting 45 percent from the field, and only attempted nine three-pointers. To offset 25 turnovers, the Shockers went 20-for-27 at the free throw line and outrebounded UNI, 48-34.

UNI shot just under 50 percent from the field, while knocking down 10-of-31 attempts from beyond the arc.

Bre Gunnels led five Panthers in double figures with 18 points.

Wichita State started out slow, as they missed their first three shots and had four turnovers. Their first points didn't come until the 6:48 mark on a pair of DJ McCarty free throws. UNI held a 10-4 lead at the midway point.

A 6-0 run tied the game at 10 behind a couple offensive rebound putbacks for Colbert. Colbert continued to dominate the offensive glass, grabbing three offensive rebounds and scoring six points off those rebounds.

Rachel Johnson's three-pointer as time expired made it 19-17 UNI after 10 minutes. Colbert and Johnson scored 11 of the team's 17 points in the opening quarter, while the five starters were just 2-for-10 from the field.

Colbert's stellar half carried over to the start of the second quarter where she scored the first six points and gave the Shockers their first lead, 23-21. UNI briefly regained the lead until Carla Bremaud answered with a three-pointer to make it 26-24 and 4:51 left in the half.

The offense stalled for more than three minutes, allowing the Panthers to retake the lead, 36-31 with 1:15 to go. Two McCully free throws before the end of the half made it 36-33.

Colbert finished the half 7-of-10 from the field for a game-high 14 points. The rest of her team was a combined 5-of-20 from the floor. Wichita State finished the half at 40 percent from the field to go with 13 turnovers.

UNI was just 3-of-14 from beyond the arc, but still managed to shoot 45 percent overall.

The Panthers began the third quarter on a 9-4 run to take their largest lead to that point, 45-37. The Shockers missed four of the first five attempts and committed five turnovers during a scoreless streak of 2:52.

UNI's lead grew to 16 after the Panthers caught fire from outside. They would take a 67-51 lead into the final period. UNI outscored Wichita State 31-18 in the third quarter to blow it open.

Wichita State would not go quietly. An 8-0 run forced a UNI timeout with 5:28 remaining and the lead down to eight, 73-65. Johnson and Strong scored 10 of the first 14 points to begin the period.

The trio of Strong, Johnson and Bastin would lead Wichita State's fourth quarter rally all the way back to tie the game, sending it to overtime tied at 78.

Strong would score the opening basket of overtime, giving Wichita State its first lead since the 2:23 mark of the second quarter. UNI answered with five straight to go back on top by three with 3:06 left in the extra period.

Bastin would have the opportunity to win it at the free throw line with 15 seconds remaining, but would only make 1-of-2 to tie the game at 85.

In the second overtime, Strong put the Shockers on the board first with a turnaround jumper. After a UNI three, Bastin came right back to put WSU ahead 89-88 with 3:00 to go. UNI went back in front following a free throw and Maahs jump shot with 1:20 remaining. Bastin again came up big with two clutch free throws to tie the game at 91 and only 24 seconds left.

Following a timeout, UNI ran the clock all the way down and executed with an easy layup to secure the win. DJ McCarty's halfcourt heave as time expired clanked off the backboard.

FGCU 78, Temple 69

The Temple women's basketball team suffered a tough 78-69 loss to FGCU Sunday afternoon at Alico Arena. The Owls fall to 0-2 on the year, while the Eagles improve to 3-2.

How It Happened
> The Owls led 24-17 at the end of the first quarter, but FGCU would go on to outscore Temple in the following three quarters to secure the win. 
> Temple committed 20 turnovers in the loss, which equated to 21 points off turnovers for the Eagles. 
> FGCU knocked down 10 threes despite shooting just 27.8% from long range.  
> The Owls held a slight edge in field goal percentage, shooting 41.5% from the floor compared to the Eagles' 39.7%. 
> Temple shot a disappointing 52.2% (12-23) from the foul line.

Statistical Leaders
> Senior Mia Davis recorded her first double-double of the season with a career-high 34 points and 12 rebounds. Davis shot 66.7% (12-18) from the floor with a pair of threes. 
> Junior Alexa Williamson was one point shy of registering a double-double with her nine-point 11-rebound effort.
> Sophomore Asonah Alexander led all players on the boards with her career-best 14 rebounds. The guard also dished out game-high seven assists. 
> Senior Emani Mayo also added nine points for the Owls. 

First Quarter: Temple 24, FGCU 17
> The Owls opened the game strong, playing lockdown defense and shooting 58.8% from the floor. Temple's pesky defense forced FGCU to commit four turnovers in the opening frame. 
> Temple used a 12-2 run to put themselves up 16-6 halfway through the first 10 minutes. 
> Davis finished the first quarter with 13 points on a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor, including two three-pointers. 

Second Quarter: FGCU 38, Temple 37
> The Eagles outscored Temple 21-13 in the second quarter to give themselves a one-point advantage at halftime. 
> FGCU forced six turnovers by the Owls. 
> The Eagles collected five offensive boards in the second quarter and scored four second-chance points. 
> Alexander went into the locker room at half with 11 rebounds and six assists, leading all players on the boards and tying her career-high. 

Third Quarter: FGCU 60, Temple 52
> The Eagles took advantage of a 7-0 run at the start of the second half to create a 45-39 lead at the 7:45 mark. 
> FGCU scored 10 of their 22 third quarter points in the paint. 
> Temple committed seven turnovers in the third, allowing the Eagles to score eight points off turnovers. 

Fourth Quarter: FGCU 78, Temple 69
> The Owls were able to cut their deficit to four points twice, but were unable to take the lead back. 
> Temple had difficulty scoring in the final 10 minutes of play, shooting 33.3% (6-18) from the field. 
> Tishara Morehouse scored 10 points for the Eagles in the fourth quarter to propel FGCU to victory.