UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich – The Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball program hosted Michigan Tech Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals (12-10, 6-8 GLIAC) came away with a seven-point victory over the Huskies (9-13, 6-8 GLIAC). The win snapped a five game losing streak for SVSU in the head-to-head matchup.
Saginaw Valley was led by Meijer Player of the Game, Aleshia Jones who put up 21 points and nine rebounds. She entered the game with 1,486 career points over her two seasons at SVSU and two at Iowa Western Community College and broke over the 1,500 point threshold in the fourth quarter. Megan McCalla followed with 12 points and six rebounds and drew eight fouls. Ava Locklear totaled 11 points and 10 rebounds for her second career double-double.
SVSU led in field goal percentage, rebounds, assists, second chance points, points in the paint, and fastbreak points while having one less turnover than MTU. The Cardinals also led for 32:28 of the game compared to 5:16 for the Huskies.
Michigan Tech started with the lead before Jones got hot in the first, scoring 11 of her 21 points in the first quarter, including a solo 7-0 run to put Saginaw Valley ahead 9-5. Jones added four free throws as McCalla drained a three for another 7-0 run as the Cardinals went into the second up 16-7. A nearly five minute scoring drought came for SVSU as MTU brought it within one before Locklear hit back-to-back shots. The Huskies hit a three late in the half to make it 25-22 Saginaw Valley as both teams headed into their locker rooms.
In the third, Lydia Meredith and McCalla stretched the lead with a 7-2 run off a Meredith three and two McCalla buckets. Michigan Tech drilled another late three at the end of the quarter, the one in the third barely beating the buzzer, which cut the lead to 37-34. The Huskies took a slim lead in the fourth before Lainey Yater tied it at 41-41 and a Locklear layup put the Cardinals back ahead. The teams traded leads again late in the contest, but a Jones layup put SVSU ahead for good. Another MTU three made it 51-49, but five free throws down the stretch sealed the deal for Saginaw Valley.
After the win, head coach Jenny Pruett had this to say about Jones and her career milestone,
"It was a big deal for her. [I'm] really proud of her effort and just her focus overall today. She had a great game defensively, a great game offensively."
Up Next: Saginaw Valley women's basketball hosts Wayne State on Thursday, February 13 before heading back on the road for the final time in the regular season. The Cardinals and Warriors are set to tip-off at 5:30 PM EST in SVSU's Play4Kay game from James E. O'Neill Arena.
