The Basics

Score: Evangel 83, Oklahoma Wesleyan 74

Location: Springfield, Mo. (AGFinancial Arena) 

Records: Evangel (17-10, 15-6), OKWU (12-15, 9-12) 

Box Score 

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Valor Women's Basketball returned home on Thursday (Feb. 20) evening, playing host to the Oklahoma Wesleyan Eagles, searching for their seventh consecutive win. With the Eagles needing a win to stay alive for conference tournament contention, Evangel knew their work would be cut out for them. In what proved to be a tight battle with neither team taking a double digit lead, the Valor never trailed after their slow first quarter start, taking a 83-74 win on Thursday.

Oklahoma Wesleyan came out attacking on Thursday, getting several baskets in the paint by their guards. The Valor responded by scoring points of their own, the majority of which came from jumpers, matching OKWU to a 10-10 ballgame with four and a half minutes remaining. Evangel grabbed their first lead of the game with a three from Evin Montgomery and extended it to 18-14 with a three pointer from Carson Dillard. EU and OKWU traded baskets to end the quarter, with another Montgomery three giving EU a 24-18 lead.

Baskets from Dillard and Lexi Berry to open the second quarter gave the Valor an eight point lead, 28-20, that EU was able to consistently hold for the majority of the period. The Eagles would close the half out on a 9-6 run, hitting a buzzer beating three pointer, as EU led, 42-38, at the halftime break.

Oklahoma Wesleyan opened the half with a very long two point jumper before Micah Clayton and Kamies both scored to put EU ahead, 46-40. The Eagles would hit a three pointer straight out of the media timeout to draw within four points of EU, 54-50, but again the Valor answered, using free throws from Dillard and a Kamies basket to take a 58-50 lead. OKWU continued to fight and were able to draw within two points of the Evangel lead, 61-59, with 43 seconds remaining in the quarter. Resa Martin hit a pair of free throws to give the Valor a bit of breathing room, as they led, 63-59, at the end of the third period.

In the fourth quarter, the Eagles again were able to score first, drawing within two of the Valor lead. A 6-0 Valor run gave EU a 69-61 lead before OKWU scored on an old fashioned three point play to stall the scoring. Both teams traded baskets until the Eagles went on a 6-0 run, coming within three points of EU's lead, 73-70. Strong defensive play from the Valor which resulted in a pair of steals led to points for the home team, as Kamies and Dillard both scored to make it a 78-70 ballgame with three minutes remaining. EU was able to use strong defensive play and take care of the ball, closing out Thursday's matchup with a 83-74 win.

QUOTABLE 

"One more down! This team keeps competing and I'm very proud of them. Oklahoma Wesleyan came to win tonight and our team was up to the task," stated Head Coach Jim Middleton. "We had nice balanced scoring inside and out. Plus, I cannot say enough good things about our bench!"

NOTABLE 

• Ali Kamies led the Valor with 24 points in Thursday's win.

• Carson Dillard (22 pts.) and Micah Clayton (12 pts.) rounded out double digit scoring for Evangel. 

• Kamie Jenkins pulled down 14 rebounds in the win.

• Clayton passed off a team high four assists.

• Evangel has racked off seven consecutive wins and sits at 17-10 with one game left to play in the regular season.

UP NEXT 

Evangel hosts Sterling on Saturday (Feb. 22) afternoon at 1:00 p.m. in AGFinancial Arena for senior day, looking to lock up the four seed in the conference tournament. Senior day festivities will take place between the men's and women's contest.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.