FORT VALLEY, Ga. __ The Tuskegee University women's basketball team fell 60-55 to Fort Valley State in the 2023 SIAC opener inside of HPE Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Arielle McElroy finished with a team-high 14 points along with five rebounds as two players scored in double figures on the day.
Mikayla Malik turned in her first double-digit game of the season with 11 points and five assists, while
Aaliyah Austin added nine points and six rebounds in the loss.
Trailing 14-5 at the end of the first quarter, the Golden Tigers used a 11-6 run as a part of a 20-14 second quarter to claw back into the game, down just 28-25 at the break. The Golden Tigers shot just 8-for-29 (27.6 percent) from the field but went a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line in the first half. McElroy turned in 11 of her 14 points in the half on 3-of-7 from the field.
Fort Valley State extended its lead to seven two minutes into the third, however Tuskegee got within a single point with a 6-0 run, to make the score 32-31 after a three-pointer from Malik with six minutes to go in the period.
The game stayed a one-possession contest for the next few minutes of play, before five unanswered points from the Wildcats to close out the third with a 47-41 lead. Tuskegee climbed within a point on three occasions in the fourth before tying the game at 55-55 at the 1:41 mark of the final quarter.
Neither team scored over the next minute, as the Wildcats gained their final lead of the game with a free throw at the 18 second mark, before securing the 60-55 win.
Fort Valley State won the rebounding battle, 38-36, scored 19 points off turnovers, and outscored the TU bench 18-15.
Meanwhile, they shot 34.6 percent (18-for-52) from the field, 37.5 percent (3-for-8) from three, and 67.7 percent (21-for-31) from the free throw line in the win compared to Tuskegee who shot 38 percent (19-for-50) from the field, 43.8 percent (7-for-16) from long range, and 76.9 percent (10-for-13) from the charity stripe.
Shekinah Rachel led the way for the Wildcats with a game-high 21 points and 14 rebounds in 30 minutes. While Ayana Cockrell was the next leading scorer with nine points in the contest.
UP NEXT
November 27, 2023: at Albany State
Tuskegee remains on the road to face Albany State inside the HPER Complex on Monday, Nov. 27 at 5:30 p.m. ET.
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