The stadium roared and Coach AnnMarie Gilbert pumped her fist as sophomore forward Olivia Fouty scored a layup off an inbounds pass from Desyree Thomas to put the Eagles up 50-38.
It was one of the few times Coach Gilbert showed emotion, but ultimately, it was that kind of game.
The Eagles (16-7, 8-2 Mid-American Conference) cruised their way to a fourth-straight victory on Saturday at the Convocation Center, defeating the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks (17-6, 7-3) 77-66 in a matchup that featured two of the MAC’s best.
The game would be the seventh-consecutive home win for the Eagles and the third-straight win against the RedHawks.
Sophomore guard/forward Natachia Watkins grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds, and scored a game-high 21 points to go along with three steals in 37 minutes. Watkins wasn’t alone, however, as three players recorded double-doubles for the Eagles.
Senior forward Paige Redditt scored 21 and snagged 13 rebounds while Fouty turned in 12 points and 10 rebounds. Senior guard Tavelyn James continued to display her strong play in the MAC, recording 18 points, four assists and two rebounds.
On a night where the EMU offense was nearly unstoppable, Thomas etched herself into the EMU record books, dishing out 13 assists, which is the second-highest output in school history.
The RedHawks were led by junior guard Courtney Osborn (19 points) and strong effort from its reserve players.
On an afternoon where EMU’s bench saw a combined eight minutes and zero-shot attempts, Miami received a 23-point effort from its bench on 8-for-18 shooting (44.4 percent).
Perhaps the biggest downfall for the RedHawks was their lack of a dominant rebounder. No player had more than five rebounds for Miami, and consequently, it was outrebounded 47-27. Miami also gave up 19 offensive rebounds, which resulted in 18 second-chance points.
EMU, namely James, started off the game extremely hot, scoring the first five points for her team, netting a quick three-point field-goal and a jump shot from the free-throw line on an EMU fast break.
EMU extended its lead to 18-7, before the RedHawks went on a run of their own, closing the gap to three, 25-22.
The teams would go into halftime tied at 34 before EMU would find success scoring the ball in the paint and playing a trapping zone defense. The Eagles would race out of half with a 19-4 run and take a 53-38 lead, which they would never relinquish.
The Eagles will conclude MAC crossover play when they host Kent State (5-14, 4-5 MAC) at 2 p.m. Saturday in the Convocation Center.
