Cantwell Paces Storm to Win in Her Return

DURANT, Okla. – Kamryn Cantwell led a foursome of double-digit scorers in her return to the lineup as Southeastern earned its second-straight win, downing Southern Nazarene 70-61 on Saturday afternoon in Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
 
The win moves the Savage Storm to 3-2 on the year and in Great American Conference Western Division play as the team readies for a home rematch with nationally-ranked Southwestern Oklahoma State on Jan. 21 at 5:30 p.m. back in Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
 
"They make a big difference," said Head Coach Darin Grover, "There's no doubt about it. Today was the first day we had Cantwell back. She hasn't practiced, and you could see a little bit of rust on her. Especially going to the basket and finishing those shots, but if you look at the stat sheet it doesn't look like that at all."
 
Cantwell turned in a game-high 18 points in her return to action, shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and knocking down two of her three three point tries.
 
She led a foursome of double-digit scorers as Briley Moon dropped 16 points, while Katie Branam, finished with 11 and Jordan Benson chipped in 10.
 
The Storm finished shooting 42.1 percent overall and 40.0 percent form beyond the arc, while Branam dished out a team-best five assists.
 
Cantwell, Benson, and Moon each hauled in six rebounds.
 
Cantwell started with a team-high nine first-half points in her return to action, while the scoring was spread around with Haiden Williams, Katie Branam, Briley Moon, and Jordan Benson each adding five point over the first 20 minutes.
 
The teams traded the lead back-and-forth early before SNU would push out to a five-point lead at 12-7 with 4:19 to go in the frame.
 
A Benson three would answer that and trigger a 9-0 run to give SE a 16-14 lead after one quarter.
 
A Cantwell three at the 7:32 mark of the second quarter extended the Savage Storm lead to 22-16, but SNU would chip away, eventually taking a 24-22 lead with 4:07 to go in the half.
 
The teams would again trade buckets before the Crimson Storm would hold a 32-31 lead at the halftime break.
 
A Moon three opened scoring in the second half and kicked off an 8-0 run capped by a Branam three to put the Storm ahead 39-32 with 7:31 to go third quarter.
 
The lead would hover there until a late push extended the SE advantage to 51-40 with 1:48 remaining in the frame on a Cantwell bucket, and the Storm would take a 54-42 lead into the fourth quarter after a Branam three beat the third-quarter buzzer.
 
SNU opened the fourth by trimming the SE edge down to seven points, but back-to-back threes from Williams and Benson would push the advantage back to 60-47 by the 7:12 mark.
 
The Southeastern lead would remain double figures until the 1:56 mark, and the Crimson Storm would get as close as seven in the final minute but a pair of Moon free throws with five seconds to play would fashion the final of 70-61.