The no. 3 Kirkwood women’s basketball team shot lights out against the North Iowa Area Community College Trojans in the matinee game of a men’s and women’s doubleheader, Saturday, Feb. 4, as they defended their perfect home record in Johnson Hall.
After winning the tip, NIACC was unable to capitalize, and the shot clock expired on their opening possession. Kirkwood took control, and Tasia Jordan opened up the scorecard for the Eagles with a jump shot from the lane. As the two teams jockeyed for position in the 1st quarter, Kirkwood’s Alycia Patterson came off the bench to hit 3 deep shots to give the Eagles a 17-5 advantage. Play continued and Kirkwood expanded their lead to 17 by the end of the 1st quarter.
The Eagles started the 2nd quarter with fresh legs from the bench and went to work. After a jumper from Nilah Coleman at the 8:21 mark the score was 32-12, and neither team would score for the next 2 minutes and 29 seconds. Kirkwood broke through the scoring drought thanks to a nice look from Zhakyla Evans, and a layup by Demetria Prewitt brought the score to 36-12. The Trojans added 6 more before the half, and the teams hit the locker rooms with a score of 36-18.
Kirkwood got off to a slow start in the 3rd quarter, until Patterson entered the game and once again hit a trio of 3s to extend the lead to 26. Emily Dreckman was good on a jumper off an assist from Patterson, and Prewitt made a shot from the charity stripe to close out the 3rd with a 30-point advantage.
The score sat at 56-26 at the beginning of the 4th quarter, and from here on out the Eagles were on cruise control. Dreckerman and Patterson each added a 3, and Jordan and Coleman made some free throws down the stretch. At the final buzzer, the Eagles walked away with a convincing 69-41 win over the Trojans.
Kirkwood shot 56.5% from the floor. Alycia Patterson was on fire, putting in 24 to lead all scorers. Demetria Prewitt added 10 off the bench, and Tasia Jordan contributed 10 of her own. The winning effort was due in no small part to the Eagles’ strong bench play, netting them 47 points, and shooting a staggering 58.8% from behind the arc. They doubled up NIACC on assists 20-10, and outscored the Trojans 16-6 in the paint.
Categories: Basketball, Sports