No. 4 Baylor Lady Bears were in town Tuesday night and defeated the Bulls 67-62. First, let’s talk about DiDi Richards and her return to the court. Even though it wasn’t her usual high-scoring game she managed to help her team with 7 assists, 2 steals, 3 rebounds, 1 block, and 4 points for the night. That to me is a successful night. The Lady Bears were in control in the last few minutes of the game.
Bethy Mununga
Okay, let’s dive in and talk about Bethy Mununga and Maria Alvarez of USF. Let’s start with Bethy Mununga who is 6’0 from Belgium. Bethy finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds. The third quarter was crucial for USF and Bethy and Maria were the reason they were close. Bethy was 3-3 from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter.
The Bulls closed the gap to a three-point deficit with seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, she fouled out with 5:52 minutes remaining in the game. That helped the Lady Bears take advantage of Bethy’s presence not in the paint, and the 3-point line.
Maria Alvarez
Now let’s talk about the sophomore from Bal Harbour, FL, Maria Alvarez. A Latina who is a beacon of light to this team and a playmaker. She entered the game in the second quarter five-minutes remaining in the quarter. Mind you this is her first game back from her injury. She had a slow start which is understandable. She quickly committed two turnovers. It was probably her nerves talking, however, we know she is a playmaker and was probably just warming up.
She hit her first three-pointer with under four minutes remaining in the third quarter. By the time the third quarter finished Maria had 15 points. This is what you call a baller haha. Her perseverance created a competitive game and the quarter ended with a score of 48-45. The game was tied a couple of times during the fourth quarter which gave USF hopes to win. In the back of their minds, they had a great chance of winning the game.
However, Maria hit her last three with four-minutes remaining in the game. She finished with 18 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal. She was 4-6 from beyond the arc. And finished 5-9 from the field. Not a bad night for a player who just got back from an injury.
Lady Bears
One of the biggest factors in Baylor’s win was Queen Egbo, the 6’3 junior finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists. Her only downfall was the four turnovers she committed. That was a huge performance for the Lady Bears. Trinity Oliver was another factor for Baylor with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 steals. The majority of the star players for Baylor played 30+ minutes for the game.
Two reasons why the Bulls lost to the Lady Bears. And that is the number of turnovers and fouls committed. The Bulls finished with 18 turnovers and finished with five team fouls plus technical fouls. Whether it was their fault or not. The foul trouble didn’t allow the Bulls to finish the game on a strong note.
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