No. 23 Huskies Win 10th Straight
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Davenport | 14 | 23 | 13 | 11 | 61 |
|
Michigan Tech | 24 | 21 | 24 | 14 | 83 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. – No. 23 Michigan Tech efficiently shot their way to a 10th straight victory Saturday with a home win over Davenport 83-61 at SDC Gymnasium in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Conference women's basketball. Ellie Mackay led the offense with 20 points and Jordan Ludescher was excellent in the lane with 17 points. The Huskies defense stood tall again for a weekend sweep against the Panthers.
"I'm really proud of our team, especially because we had a little bit of a slower start and then we responded," said head coach Sam Hoyt. "It is not easy to win in this league. Everyone had to come in and do their job and every single player did that tonight. When we get stops and play really good defense, it tends to ignite our offense. That's what happened today in the third quarter.
The Huskies shot 54-percent (32-for-59) overall and 29.4-percent (5-for-17) from beyond the arc but the difference maker was points in the paint, where MTU outscored DU 48-14 for the category. Cassidy Trotter was tasked with guarding Panther sharpshooter Toni Grace and Grace ended 5 of 14 with 16 points. Meanwhile, Mackay connected on 7-for-14 basket tries for 20 points and Ludescher was 6-for-8 for 17 points.
Michigan Tech also out-rebounded Davenport 35-31 and posted nine steals compared to six. The Huskies were more responsible with the basketball and committed 15 turnovers while forcing 24. Davenport shot 35.8-percent (19-for-53) as a team and 10-for-22 (45.5-percent) from 3-point range.
Tech started the game with a slim 15-10 lead and after a turnover on offense, Ludescher hustled down the court and made a big block to thwart a Davenport chance on the fast break. The lead grew to 24-14 at the end of the first quarter and with help from Mackay's long-range three pointer, stayed in front 45-37 at the half.
The Huskies continued to find passing lanes down in the low post in the third quarter and took advantage of their largest margin 69-50 heading into the final 10 minutes. Sara Dax, Kylie Mogen, and Tessa Leece were all positive contributors off the bench down the stretch for MTU. Dax played 18 minutes and notched eight points and a pair of assists. Mogen had six points, six rebounds, and Leece added five points and a late 3-pointer.
"I felt that we came out with really tough defensive urgency in the third quarter and that enabled us to get some looks in transition and score it inside," Hoyt said. "Jordan and Sara finished phenomenally as well as Tessa Leece. This was the first game that Tessa really got significant minutes and she came in and hit some great shots as well."
Saturday marked the first time since the 2014-15 season the Huskies notched 10 straight victories and the first during Sam Hoyt's tenure as head coach. No. 23 Michigan Tech (12-1) travels to Marquette to play Northern Michigan Tuesday, February 16 at 7:30 p.m. With five games to play in the regular season, the Huskies hold sole possession of first place in the GLIAC North Division.
