NC Tennessee News

Shamarre Hale went perfect from the field and recorded her second double-double of the season, leading Austin Peay State University women's basketball to a 64-53 ASUN Conference win against Central Arkansas, Thursday, at the Farris Center.

Hale went 7-of-7 from the floor in her 18-point, 11-rebound performance, becoming the first Gov to not miss a basket on at least five shots since D'Shara Booker went 5-for-5 from the field against Davidson in the Women's Basketball Invitational, March 20.

Austin Peay (10-6, 5-1 ASUN) earned its fourth-straight win of the season against Central Arkansas (6-11, 1-5 ASUN), its longest winning streak of the season and tied for the longest streak under by second-year head coach, Brittany Young. The win also marked the fifth time in program history that the Governors won five of their first six conference games.

A 4-2 Central Arkansas lead 64 seconds in was the final advantage of the night for a shorthanded Sugar Bears squad that was limited to just eight players. 

The Govs and Sugar Bears traded scores throughout the first quarter, with every other score bringing the two teams back to even.

After entering the scoring column midway through the first quarter, Hale scored APSU's final six points of the opening quarter, with the final giving APSU a 12-10 lead entering the second quarter.

The reigning ASUN Newcomer of the Week, Hale outrebounded the Sugar Bears herself in the game's opening 10 minutes, hauling in three of APSU's eight boards, while UCA was held to just two rebounds.

A Yamia Johnson three-pointer to open the second quarter gave Austin Peay the first multi-score advantage of the game at 15-10. The Sugar Bears trimmed their deficit back to three on the next possession, but a layup by Johnson followed by Liz Gibbs' first basket of the game gave the Govs a six-point lead less than two minutes into the quarter.

An Anala Nelson three-pointer extended Austin Peay's lead to 26-17 and, after UCA answered with a three of their own, the Columbia, South Carolina native drained her career-best second triple of the day to extend the Govs' lead back to nine.

Austin Peay's final four points of the first half came from the charity stripe, with the ASUN's second and third-best free shooters in Mariah Adams and Johnson both cashing in on a pair of attempts.

Johnson led all scorers with 10 points at the half. She was followed by Nelson's eight which already tied her career high set last week against Kennesaw State.

Gabby Zapata Smalls scored the second half's first points after grabbing a pair of offensive rebounds before scoring her second basket to put the Govs up 35-24. Austin Peay held on to its 11-point lead until a game-long 9-0 run by the Sugar Bears brought them within two points for the first time since the start of the second quarter.

Driving layups by Jada Roberson and Adams halted UCA's scoring run, but the Govs found themselves up just 45-41 entering the fourth quarter.

After the Sugar Bears brought the game back within a score on a quarter-opening basket, five-straight points by Hale directly followed by a Tiya Douglas triple put the Govs back up double digits with 6:22 to play.

The Sugar Bears trimmed their deficit to as few as five points at 55-50, but Austin Peay did not miss a shot from the field and went 5-for-6 from the charity stripe over the game's final two minutes to secure its 10th win of the season.

The Difference

Rebounding and Shamarre Hale. Austin Peay outrebounded Central Arkansas 37-17, including 11-4 on the offensive glass, but the story of the night was Hale's performance. The Jan. 12 ASUN Newcomer of the Week tallied a game-high 18 points and 11 boards in under 29 minutes of action on the court. She also shot an impressive 80 percent from the line, making four of her five attempts.

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