The Lady Bisons fought hard against the Skyhawks, but fell, losing 67-83 at the UT Martin Elam Center.
The Lady Bisons shot well, 20-42, but just couldn’t seem to get into a rhythm during the game. The Skyhawk defense was tough and started pressing the second the Bisons got the ball.
The game went back and forth at the beginning, with the Bisons gaining a lead over the Skyhawks with a second-quarter 11-2 run.
But the Skyhawks quickly retook the lead 36-29.
Lipscomb cut UT Martin’s lead to seven with five minutes to go, due to them shooting 71.4% in the fourth quarter. But the Skyhawks ended the game on a 15-6 run and walked away with a 83-67 win.
Despite the loss, the Bisons shot 47.6% from the field overall, largely in part to the standout freshmen.
The freshman trio of guards, Blythe Pearson, Jalyn Holcomb and Casey Collier, were responsible for almost 70% of the team’s points.
Pearson dropped a career-high 20 points off the bench in her 24:51 minutes. Holcomb scored 16 points in her 38:31 minutes of playing time. Collier scored 9 points in her 34:29 minutes.
However, even these standout performances were not enough to give the Bisons the win, due in part to the crowd of over 4,000 students from area schools that packed into the arena providing a unique energy that seemed to keep Martin fueled throughout the game. This crowd was in attendance because of UT Martin’s “Kids Day” game where schools allowed kids to attend the game instead of class.
Lipscomb is closing out 2019 with a trip to Tennessee Tech on Saturday, tipping off at 2 p.m.