Cedar Rapids, IA - A tough shooting night for the #14 Illinois Central College women's basketball team led to a 75-50 loss to #1 Kirkwood on Saturday afternoon at the Kirkwood Classic.  The Cougar defense played well enough in the first half to offset their 25% field goal shooting (down 33-27 at the half) but ICC managed only four field goals after intermission (4-27 for 18%) to suffer their first loss of the season.

"We played well defensively in the first half but we're not going to beat many teams with that low of shooting percentage," head coach Karrie Redeker said.  "We eventually were able to get to the free throw line but still struggled with Kirkwood's physicality and their depth eventually wore us down.  We are proud of our kids for fighting the entire 40 minutes and we'll definitely learn from this."   

ICC had a six-point lead early in the game as Naomi Elliott hit two three-pointers but she and Halie Gilbert (5 points) were the only two players to score in the opening quarter as the Eagles took a 15-11 lead.  

In the second period, Kyleigh Block added two jumpers from the left baseline,  Gilbert added two more buckets, and Jada Smith hit an open jumper coupled with strong defense to keep the Cougars close at the half. 

The halftime talk was about being more aggressive offensively but unfortunately ICC went shotless for nearly the first three minutes, allowing Kirkwood to open up a 37-27 advantage.  Gilbert helped the guests get on track with a bucket and Cierra McNamee and T'yana Lovelace combined for six points but the home team took a 52-39 lead heading into the final period. 

The fourth quarter saw the Cougars get into the free throw bonus early, but as cold as the Cougars were from the field is how hot the Eagles got, leading to the lopsided final score.  

Leaders
Halie Gilbert 16 pts, 4 reb
Naomi Elliott 11 pts, 6 reb
Peyton Dearing - took a charge

I BEAT THE DEAN HUSTLE AWARD:  Halie Gilbert

Next up: The Cougars, now 2-1, will host Black Hawk on Tuesday, November 15 in a 5:30 pm contest a Ramsey Gym.  Livestream will be on the ICC Athletics YouTube.