SE Holds on For Win Over UAM

Box Score DURANT, Okla. – Emily Williams turned in her fourth-straight 20-point game and the Savage Storm picked up their third home win in a row by topping Arkansas-Monticello 68-63 on Thursday night in Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
 
SE improved to 12-7 overall on the year and 9-4 in Great American Conference play, moving into a tie for second with Southwestern Oklahoma State following a Bulldog loss at Arkansas Tech on Thursday night.
 
Williams knocked down four three point buckets and finished a total of 8-for-11 from the floor to post a 22-point outing, her fifth in the last six games and seventh overall.
 
Haley Schaefer joined her in double-digits with 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, while Cheree Kiser added 10 points off the bench thanks to a pair of threes.
 
On the night the Storm finished shooting 49.0 percent from the floor, and 40.9 percent from long range, hitting 9-of-22 threes.
 
Williams also led the way on the glass with seven rebounds which matched UAM's leading rebounder for a game-high, but SE was edged out in the rebounding battle as a team by a 34-to-26 margin.
 
Taylor Richards and Kaylie Baxter dished out team-highs of four assists, while three others dished out three each and the Storm finished with 19 helpers on the night.
 
Southeastern took advantage of an edge in turnovers by outscoring the Cotton Blossoms 21-13 on miscues, however, UAM held slight edges in second-chance points and points in the paint.
 
UAM came out swinging and jumped to a 7-0 lead by the 18:24 mark.
 
Natalie Ruud provided a spark off the bench following an SE time out, hitting a jumper and a three to trigger a 10-2 run that put the Storm up 10-9 after a Schaefer layup.
 
The teams would trade the lead until a Williams three with 6:04 to play in the half put Southeastern in front 22-20.
 
The Storm would maintain the lead for the remainder of the half, finishing with the final five points of the half to take a 32-24 lead to the locker room at halftime.
 
SE slowly extended its lead in the early part of the second half, eventually taking a 51-31 lead on a Schaefer bucket with 11:55 to play.
 
UAM would slowly chip away at the Storm lead which would stay double-digits until a Courtni Gibson three with 2:18 to play.
 
The Blossoms would close all the way to 66-63 with 29 second to play on another Gibson bucket, but UAM would miss a game-tying three point try and Shelby Hill would add a pair of insurance free throws with one second on the clock to give the Storm the 68-63 win.