Box Score | Season Stats

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The SBU Bearcats took advantage of a big first half, leading by 24 at halftime, to knock off the Lincoln Blue Tigers on the road, 67-47. The SBU defense had one of it's most dominant performances of the year, scoring 29 points off 28 Lincoln turnovers. Jaquavia Couch came off the bench to lead the 'Cats in scoring, with 16 points.

The Blue Tigers took a quick 4-0 lead in the opening minutes, after bringing down seven rebounds, compared to SBU's two. The Bearcats took their first lead of the game at the 14:27 mark, when Kourtni Williams' jumper gave SBU a 5-4 advantage, and the Bearcats never looked back. SBU pushed their lead to 12 when Courtney Heady hit one of her four three-pointers in the game, putting the 'Cats up 17-5 midway through the first half. Heady finished with 14 points off 5-for-9 shooting.

A 9-0 run in the closing minutes of the first half gave the Bearcats their largest lead of the game, making the score 40-16 with just 1:05 left until halftime. Lincoln answered back in the start of the second half, reeling off the first 17 points to close the gap to just a 42-35 SBU lead. Lincoln's Vivian Essuon led the charge with eight points during the run, and finished with 12 points and 18 rebounds. The Bearcats got their rhythm back, however, and pulled away for the 20-point victory.

Senior guard Ashleigh Gallio joined Heady and Couch in double-figures for SBU, scoring 12 points while shooting 5-of-12 from the field. Whitney Malone and LaKendra Smith each brought down a team-high nine rebounds, while Smith was just one board and two points away from the season's first double-double.

Couch led the team in scoring, largely due to her 8-for-12 performance from the free throw line. Couch's eight free throws are the most by a Bearcat this season.

With the win, SBU improves to 1-1 in the MIAA, and 4-2 overall, while Lincoln is yet to record it's first win in conference play. The Bearcats return home this Tuesday, December 7, when they host Truman at 5:30 p.m.