Danville, Ill. -  The ICC women's basketball team used a strong first half defensive effort and timely plays in the second half to get back on the winning track in a 72-61 win over Danville Area CC in Mary Miller Gymnasium in Region 24 and M-WAC action on Saturday afternoon.  The Cougars held DACC to just 21% field goal shooting in the first twenty minutes to build a fifteen-point halftime lead and then used strong rebounding and free throw shooting to break their three-game skid.  Kayla Gordon led in scoring with 18 points, Kristyn Mitchell added 15 points and 5 rebounds, while Courtney Jones had a stellar overall performance with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

ICC started strongly as scores by Gordon, Mitchell, and Cierra McNamee helped ICC take a 14-9 lead.  The defense then revved up, helping the guests go on an 11-2 run to take a 23-12 first quarter edge.  The strong defense continued in the second quarter as ICC forced DACC into two shot clock violations, five turnovers, and a charge taken (Gordon) to hold the hosts to just seven points in the stanza.  Offensively, Peyton Dearing nailed a three-pointer, T'yana Lovelace and Keijah Gray scored inside, and Dayja Evans added a layup to help put ICC up 34-19 at the break.

ICC pushed the lead to 49-29 with scores from Gordon, Mitchell, Jones, and Lovelace before DACC went on a run to cut their deficit to 52-39 heading into the final frame.  The Jaguars kept on the attack and whittled away at the lead, getting as close as 64-57 but Jones found Mitchell for a basket and Dearing got a steal and layup to push the lead back up to 68-59 as the Blue and Gold held on for the win.

Keys to the win were a 40-29 rebounding edge and 23-28 performance from the free throw line (82%).

"After taking three lumps in the past week, we needed this win in a big way," head coach Karrie Redeker said.  "Our defense set the tone from the very beginning which was huge and from there, we just played hard and had fun which was good to see."

Statistical Leaders:
Scoring | Kayla Gordon (18), Kristyn Mitchell (15), Courtney Jones (13)
Field Goals | Gordon (6-11)
3-Pointers | Gordon (2-3)
Free Throws | Jones (7-7)
Rebounds | Cierra McNamee (9)
Assists | Jones (5)
Blocks | Mitchell (3)
Steals | Jones, Peyton Dearing (2 each)
Charge taken | Gordon

Next Game:
#6 ICC COUGARS (17-9, 7-3)
vs. #15 Lake Land Lakers (19-6, 7-2)
Wednesday, February 16th, 2022
1:00 PM Tipoff
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