Fourth Quarter Comeback Falls Short As Tigers Fall To Wichita State

Wednesday, January 10

Wichita, Kan.

7:00 PM

University of Memphis

6-10, 1-2

Wichita State

6-12, 1-3

Memphis

Wichita State

Photo by: Wichita State Athletics

Fourth Quarter Comeback Falls Short As Tigers Fall To Wichita State

Jan 10, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Elmore leads Tigers with 23 points, Creighton enters Tulsa game eight points shy of 1,000 career points

WICHITA, Kan. – A fourth quarter rally fell short as the University of Memphis women's basketball team fell to Wichita State Wednesday evening by a score of 69-61. The Tigers drop to 6-10 on the year and 1-2 in American Athletic Conference play with a trip to Tulsa coming up Saturday.

How It Happened
Memphis and Wichita State opened the contest by exchanging baskets until the Shockers took the lead at 7-6 with 4:34 left in the first quarter. The host squad proceeded to go on a 9-0 run, building a 13-6 lead over the Tigers.

In the first quarter, senior forward Cheyenne Creighton had eight of Memphis' 12 points.

The Tigers rallied back to start the second quarter with a 5-0 run capped by a Brea Elmore free throw. Her made shot from the charity stripe proved to be the final time Memphis would be tied with the Shockers. Again, Wichita State had an answer and finished the first half with a seven-point, 29-22, lead over Memphis.

Out of the break, Memphis and Wichita State played an even third quarter with 17 points apiece. Down as many as eight with 8:48 to play in the game, the Tigers produced a 7-0 run to come within one of the Shockers. Taylor Barnes started the run with a three-pointer and Elmore ended the run with a lay-up with 5:24 to play.

Wichita State answered and held the Tigers scoreless from the floor for over four minutes while building its lead back up to seven. Another Elmore three-pointer fell with 47 seconds on the clock, but it proved to come too late as Wichita State continued to knock down its free throws in the closing seconds. Elmore finished the fourth quarter with 18 points.

Turning Point
After Wichita State ignited a 9-0 run in the first quarter, the momentum proceeded to fall in favor of the Shockers throughout the rest of the contest. The Tigers tied up the game one more time in the second quarter and attempted a rally in the fourth, but was unable to regain the lead from the Shockers.

Notables

Cheyenne Creighton finished with 19 points and six rebounds and will enter the game against Tulsa just eight points shy of eclipsing the 1,000-point milestone.
Brea Elmore ended with 23 points including 18 in the fourth quarter.
Both Wichita State and Memphis finished with 15 turnovers each.
The Tigers knocked down five three-pointers and Jada Stinson finished with two of them.
Taylor Barnes led the Tigers with five assists. Memphis finished with 15 assists on 25 made baskets.
Memphis shot 47.2 percent from the floor but was outrebounded 39-25.

Melissa McFerrin Quotable
I thought Cheyenne was a warrior tonight, but we relied on her too much. We had a couple of shots fall short. Elmore did a great job in the second half of being aggressive. I told our players before the game that we had to be 10 points better and tonight we weren't.

Next Up For The Tigers
Memphis remains on the road and will head to Tulsa, Okla. for a Saturday afternoon contest against the Golden Hurricane. Tip against Tulsa is set for 12 p.m. CT and can be heard on 91.7 FM WUMR. For more information on the Memphis women's basketball team, follow the Tigers on Twitter at @MemphisWBB.