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Thorobrettes shot and swat past Miles

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By Chase Sewell
February 5, 2010

Three players posted some impressive stats Thursday night to lead the Kentucky State Thorobrettes to their third straight win. Two lit up the scoreboard while another kept Lemoyne-Owen from doing the same.


Senior guard Jessica Vaughn and freshman forward Stephanie Harper took turns putting points on the board while senior forward Kiarra Morgan was swatting the Lady Magicians’ shots like flies.


KSU led early and often at the Exum Center, taking down Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foe Lemoyne-Owen, 74-65.


 “I thought it was a good effort,” KSU coach Stephanie Evans said. “We had control most of the game with the exception of one lead change in the first half. We had been off for a week and I was very curious how we were going to respond having a week off. I thought that we responded well, came out, and played with intensity.”


Vaughn showed no signs of rust as she scored 15 points in the first half on 4-of-8 shooting form the field and was 3-of-5 shooting from 3-point range. Vaughn had 22 points for the game.


“They started off in a kind of man-to-man and when they went to a zone,” Evans said of the Lady Magicians, “it allowed her to get off a better shot when we weren’t getting any interior points from Stephanie or (Kiarra Morgan). I thought that she did a great job of shooting from the outside.”


Vaughn saw that zone as well, and took full advantage.


“They were in a zone, sagging back, leaving the perimeter wide open, so I took the shots,” Vaughn said.


The Thorobrettes led by as many as 14 points in the first half, but the Lady Magicians mounted a small comeback just before the break to get the lead down to eight, 34-26.


Things switched around in the second half. The Lady Magicians began to defend the perimeter and that allowed the Brettes’ post players to see some action.


“We talked in the locker room about the post players stepping up,” Evans said. “We thought that their post players came in and were really working hard. We weren’t matching their intensity on the inside.”


Harper heeded the call and took KSU on her back to start the second half, outscoring Lemoyne-Owen 12-4 all by herself in the opening four minutes.


“I think I did a better job of moving,” Harper said, “and I think the guards did a good job of getting me the ball by driving and kicking it to me.”


Harper scored 20 points in the second half and finished with a game-high 24 points.


“I knew they were going to make adjustments at halftime,” Vaughn said, “so it made it easy to drive and dish to the post. They fell asleep on them.


“That is part of the reason why Stephanie had her 20 points in the second half, because they weren’t expecting it.”


Despite the early offensive explosion, the Lady Magicians didn’t lay down and put on a run of their own led by Shonice Sprouse and Ryan Herd. Lemoyne-Owen went on a 15-6 run that lasted until the 10:48 mark. KSU still led by 10. 


Herd finished with a double-double – 21 points, 10 rebounds – while Sprouse had 13 points.


Lemoyne-Owens also began to press the Thorobrettes and it caused some issues, slowing down the KSU offense.


“They went to a full 1-3-1, so we needed to make the adjustment – we needed to get someone in the middle,” Evans said. “It took a couple of possessions to make the adjustment and get someone in the middle of the press.”


The Lady Magicians got within five points, 55-50, with just over nine minutes left in the game.


But it was Morgan that kept the Lady Magicians at bay with an impressive 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots on the night. She also added six points.


“She is always a solid defensive player for us and comes up with the big blocks,” Evans said. “Sometimes, when she doesn’t give us the points … you have to look at the 10 defensive rebounds. That’s taking a lot of their second-chance shots away.


“Then, the seven blocks shots, that’s even more points that she stops. What she doesn’t put up in points, she makes up for in blocks.”


KSU rebuilt its lead on an 11-3 run that started with a pair of free throws by Harper and ended with jumper by Kiera Nelson to put KSU up 68-53 with 4:21 left to play.


The Thorobrettes sit at 13-6 this season – 13-3 in the SIAC – and seem to be on the rise and looking to peak come tournament time.


“We’re not where we need to be, but we’re definitely making constant progress,” Vaughn said. “It’s a great thing – it’s early February and we have 2-3 games every week – as long as we keep that momentum going, come early March, we’ll have our chemistry together, we’ll have our rotation together, and players will have confidence. Once we put all those pieces together, we’ll be ready for the tournament.”


KSU hosts Miles College Saturday. The game is set to tip off at 1 p.m.


LeMOYNE-OWEN (65) – Ryan Herd 21, Shonice Sprouse 13, Karen Barr 10, Amber Johnson 8, Sharita Jones 7, Tangela Albright 4, Tyra terry 2.


KENTUCKY STATE (74) – Stephanie Harper 24, Jessica Vaughn 22, Kiarra Morgan 6, Asia DuBose 6, Kiera Nelson 6, Latrice Watkins 3, Shana McCombs 3, Tasia Smith 2, Joanna Powell 2.




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