Billiken luck can't overcome Lady'Back skill

FAYETTEVILLE – The dynamic duo of Lauren Ervin and Whitney Jones were too much for St. Louis to overcome as the University of Arkansas Lady Razorback basketball team continued its record-setting season with a 74-59 win at Bud Walton Arena on Saturday afternoon.

Ervin scored a game high 23 points on the day followed by Jones’ 17. Ervin also grabbed a double-double with 12 rebounds. Brittany Vaughn scored 11 points to be the only other Lady Razorback in double figures.

The Lady Razorback win improves them to 11-0 on the year while St. Louis falls to 3-8 overall.

“This is getting to be a bit of a routine, but I kind of like it,” head coach Tom Collen said.

A see-saw game throughout the opening half of play, Arkansas and St. Louis traded leads 11 times during the first 20 minutes. Arkansas held the largest lead of the half at five points which they did on three occasions, but each Lady Razorback push was thwarted by an equally impressive St. Louis mini-run.

Keeping Arkansas in the contest was the play of Ervin who hit for 17 points and grabbed six boards. She was 7-10 from the floor and 1-1 from three-point range compared to the rest of the Lady’Backs who shot 7-17 and 0-4 from behind the arc.

“We know if we can get it inside there aren’t many people who can stop her,” Brittney Vaughn said of Ervin.

“They sagged off me a bit in the first half and it opened things up,” Ervin said. “They made their adjustments in the second half.”

The Lady Razorbacks opened the second half strong and gave themselves a bit of breathing room in the tight contest. Opening the half with an 8-2 run, Arkansas was not only able to secure its largest lead of the game, but also secure an avenue to exploit the Billikens.

Opening a 10-point lead midway through the half, the Lady Razorbacks were able to sub more freely in the closing moments of the game, a luxury they had not had in the first half. Aiding the Lady’Backs in their cause was the St. Louis’ failure to hit shots at the same rate as it had in the first half. Shooting 41% over the opening 20 minutes, the Billikens hit just 39 percent in the second half for a game total of 40 percent. Arkansas managed to convert on 53 percent of its shots for the game.

The Lady Razorbacks are back home on Tuesday, Dec. 18 when it takes on Memphis at Bud Walton Arena. For more information about Lady Razorback basketball or about Arkansas women’s athletics, please go to www.ladybacks.com.