CHICAGO — The Chicago State women's basketball team (4-14, 3-6 WAC) toppled Tarleton, 58-48, on Saturday at the Jones Convocation Center.
"We always talk about protecting home court, and it feels good to get another, win" head coach Tiffany Sardin said. "It was a collective team effort. We need everybody. We need our entire team to be ready to play."
Aaliyah Collins led Chicago State with 14 points, while Janiah Newell added 13 and Allysah Boothe poured in 12 on 4-of-5 shooting from three.
The Cougars turned in an exceptional shooting game, tallying a 50 percent clip from the floor and drilling 7-of-12 from three as they earned their second consecutive home win.
The Cougars opened on a nice roll, scoring the first four points on a free throw and Boothe's first three. Quentarra Mitchell and Collins soon added treys, and CSU was nursing a 14-8 lead after four minutes.
The Texans then answered with a few buckets from Malaya Kendrick, who scored 10 points on the afternoon. After a Tarleton spurt, the Cougars led, 19-18, after a quarter.
In the second quarter, Chicago State's hot shooting continued, with Boothe adding two more treys but the Texans hanging around thanks to key shots from Jurnee President and Nya Mitchels. The Cougars trailed 33-31 at halftime, due in part to a 2-for-10 line from the free-throw stripe in spite of the blazing shooting from the floor.
But the third quarter is when Chicago State's defense turned up the head, keeping Tarleton scoreless until the 3:19 mark, when President hit a three. CSU came out on a 16-3 run, taking a lead they would never give up. Kyjai Miles scored a flurry of third-quarter points, while Newell manned the offense efficiently, and CSU led, 47-41, entering the fourth.
In quarter four, Chicago State held off Tarleton's attempted comeback, as the Texans would only pull to within four. Collins nailed another three and kept her tenacious defense humming. The Cougars iced it down the stretch on layups from Newell, Christina Britter and a Miles jumper.
The 58-48 win is Chicago State's third WAC win and second home win in a row.
"You have to have fun," Sardin said. "Today was really special. I asked our women to play for something, for someone, and we did that."
The Cougars return to the home hardwood on Monday at 1:00 p.m. against Abilene Christian, which is the program's Faculty/Staff Education Game. They'll then take a two-game Texas roadtrip to Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. In 1991, the Chicago State women's tennis team became the first all-black college team to amass an unbeaten season at the NCAA level. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title, also making an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. Chicago State volleyball recorded a historic season in 2021, with Yanlis Feliz becoming CSU's first volleyball All-American and head coach Tony Trifonov earning selection as WAC Coach of the Year.
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