Techsters falter at home against Charlotte

RUSTON, La. – Louisiana Tech took a step back Thursday night as the Lady Techsters shot a season low from the field and lost 64-51 to Charlotte at the Thomas Assembly Center.

Tech (16-10, 7-6 C-USA) saw a 10-point second quarter lead evaporate as Charlotte closed the first half on a 13-2 run and the 49ers never trailed in the final two quarters.

“I just felt like we kind of went through the motions,” said Tech head coach Brooke Stoehr. “We got 63 shots and we scored only 51 points on our home floor. I thought we were soft. Give credit to Charlotte. But I think we did good job of taking ourselves out of this game too.”

Tech led 16-13 after the first quarter of play and extended the advantage out to 25-15 after a 9-0 run that featured points from four different Lady Techsters. However, things turned south as Alexus Malone picked up her second foul with 5:09 to play in the second quarter, forcing Stoehr to sit her lone senior.

With Malone on the bench, Tech went stagnant offensively. The Lady Techsters hit just one of their final eight field goals to close the quarter while Charlotte found success on the perimeter and inside. Laia Raventos’ two free throws with 50 seconds to play in the second quarter gave the 49ers a 28-27 halftime lead.

Tech’s offensive efficiency didn’t improve in the second half. The Lady Techsters hit just 7-of-32 field goals after halftime for only 21 percent, including just 2-of-13 in the final 10 minutes of action. Tech trailed 44-39 at the end of three quarters but the 49ers pushed their lead to double digits early in the fourth quarter and kept it there for most of the remainder of the game.

“I just thought we reverted back to how we were playing at the beginning of the league schedule,” said Stoehr. “We were standing around a lot. We weren’t screening with a purpose and cutting with a purpose. I told them we have to put this behind us. Nothing changes. We have to get better and get ready for Southern Miss.”

Malone led Tech with 16 points and 10 rebounds – her seventh double double of the year – while Kierra Anthony added 10 points and four steals. Reauna Cleaver pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds to go with eight points.

Junior Taylor Stahly hit two more three-pointers, setting a new LA Tech record for consecutive games with a three-pointer at 26.

Octavia Wilson led Charlotte with 14 points while Raventos and Nyila Jamison-Myers added 13 points each and Mariah Linney chipped in with 12 points.

Tech returns to action Saturday when the Lady Techsters host Southern Miss at 2:30 p.m. for Senior Day.