Otahkians again cruise past TSU

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State University's women were not quite as dominant against Tennessee State the second time around.

But the Otahkians still had little trouble handling the Ohio Valley Conference's worst team Saturday and extending their season-high winning streak to five games.

The Otahkians' 87-58 road victory pushed their overall record to 13-10 and their OVC mark to 8-4, as they moved into a third-place tie. The Tigers, last among the OVC's 11 squads, fell to 1-21 and 0-12.

"We had to get to five so we can get to six," said senior forward Yashika Sidbury, referring to the Otahkians' one-at-a-time approach to their winning streak. "We just want to keep it going."

When Southeast and TSU hooked up Jan. 15 in Cape Girardeau, the Otahkians raced out to a 30-point halftime lead and romped 102-45.

TSU provided a bit more resistance this time around. The Tigers actually held a few early leads before the Otahkians opened up a 42-23 halftime advantage.

Southeast saw its margin sliced to 14 points early in the second half, but the Otahkians ran out to a 30-point lead and coasted to victory.

"We started off slow, but we picked it up in the second half and it's good to win," Sidbury said.

Said Southeast coach B.J. Smith: "I wouldn't say we played great, but I was glad we stretched it out in the second half. The main thing was to keep our streak going."

Smith was particularly pleased with the play of several Southeast reserves, led by junior forward Miah Shelford, who came off the bench to lead all scorers with a career-high 19 points. She hit seven of nine field-goal attempts and all five of her free throws.

"With this team, we have so many good players, it just happened to be my night," said Shelford, who has come on strong in recent weeks.

Said Smith, "Miah has had a lot of injuries the last two years and she's just now getting all her strength back. She's been playing well and she can be a really important player for us."

The Otahkians received 49 points from their bench, including nine each from junior guard Brandi Russia and junior center Chandra Brown. Russia also had six of Southeast's 20 steals and added three assists. Brown grabbed eight rebounds and blocked two shots.

Sophomore guard Tiffanne Ryan, continuing to come on strong after missing several weeks with an ankle injury, added eight points off the bench.

"With our style of play, we need everybody," Smith said. "Miah and Brandi maybe had their best games of the year and Tiffanne keeps coming on after her injury."

Among Southeast's starters, Sidbury had her fourth straight double-figure scoring performance with 11 points and junior guard Sami Jo Cotton also contributed 11 points to go along with five assists and four steals. Senior point guard Sarah Costello recorded nine assists and four steals.

Southeast shot 47.7 percent from the field (31 of 65) while TSU shot 38.5 percent (20 of 52). The Tigers also lost the turnover department by a big margin, having 28 to the Otahkians' 15.

"We're peaking at the right time," Shelford said.

The Otahkians return to action Thursday, hosting Eastern Kentucky.