KOAM TV 7 Joplin and PittsburgConley Leads Gorillas Over MSSU to Win Sonic Point

Conley Leads Gorillas Over MSSU to Win Sonic Point

JOPLIN – Brooke Conley led the Gorillas with 25 points as PSU earned an 88-74 win over rival Missouri Southern (7-15, 3-13 MIAA). With the win the Pittsburg State women's basketball team (21-2, 15-1 MIAA) sewed up the sports Sonic Trophy Series point.

Brooke Conley led four Gorillas in double figures with 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting on the night. She also added seven rebounds. Lizzy Jeronimus added 20 to go along with her five rebounds and four assists. Alexa Bordewick chipped in with 15 on 3-of-6 shooting from long range. Drew Roberts scored 10. Lauren Brown put together a solid performance off the bench for PSU racking up seven points, a team high eight rebounds and five blocked shots.

The Gorillas did have to overcome some first half adversity to win the game. PSU trailed by eight with 9:45 left in the first half, thanks in large part to nine early turnovers. A three-point play by Jeronimus gave the Gorillas a 26-24 lead with 6:59 left before the half. A Lauren Brown put back with five seconds left gave Pitt State a 38-32 advantage at the break.  

The Pitt State scoring attack continued into the second half, as the Gorillas expanded their lead to double digits, 54-40, after a four-point play by Conley with 16:16 to play. Once they were ahead by double digits, the team never let the lead get below 10 for the rest of the game.

Defense played a key role as the Gorillas expanded their lead throughout the second half. PSU held MSSU to an over six minute field goal drought and also held the lions to a .358 (24-67) shooting percentage for the game.

For the game, the Gorillas shot .526 (30-57) from the field, .375 (6-16) from distance, and .759 (22-29) from the charity stripe. The two sides each pulled down 40 rebounds.

Missouri Southern's Larrita Gipson led the Lions with 23 points. Erin Rice was the Lions' second-leading scorer adding 13 points and finished with a double-double as she snagged 11 rebounds. Kelby Fritz added 11 points off the bench.

The Gorillas sweep of the Lions was the first since the 2004-05 season.

The Gorillas return to John Lance Arena for a two-game home stand. On Saturday (Feb. 11) PSU will take on Lincoln with tip-off set for 1:30 p.m. Next Wednesday (Feb. 15) Pitt State will face off against Emporia State at 5:30 p.m.