Boyd leads Grambling Lady Tigers past McNeese Cowgirls

LAKE CHARLES, Louisiana | Jazmin Boyd led three Grambling State University women's basketball players in double figures with 18 points as the Lady Tigers used a big first-half run in a 75-60 victory over McNeese on Wednesday afternoon in Burton Coliseum.
 
Grambling State (2-3) trailed 13-5 early in the first quarter, but used a 14-2 run over the final five minutes to grab a 19-15 lead. The Cowgirls (2-2) cut the margin to two a few times, but could not get past the Lady Tigers.
 
Boyd finished with 18 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, five assists and four rebounds. Monisha Neal and Deja McKinney each added 17 points, as both players sank three 3-pointers. Neal and Takerra Parsons led the way on the glass with eight boards. Shakyla Hill added nine points, a team-high six assists, six rebounds, two steals and one block.
 
Keara Hudall paced McNeese with 21 points, on 9-of-23 shooting, and four rebounds. Caitlin Davis tallied 17 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals.
 
Turning Point
McNeese raced out to a 13-5 advantage after a Caitlin Davis free throw with 5:21 left in the opening quarter, but Grambling State rallied and closed the first quarter strong as the Lady Tigers used a 14-2 run over the final five minutes to grab a 19-15 lead.
 
The Cowgirls cut the deficit to 26-24 after a 3-pointer by Gabby Guidry with 4:32 left, but again the Lady Tigers answered and pushed the margin to 33-26 after a Deja McKinney 3-pointer with 1:42 remaining in the first half.
 
McNeese trimmed the margin to 33-31 after a Keara Hudnall 3-pointer, but Grambling State got a layup by Shakyla Hill at the buzzer to take a 35-31 advantage into the break.
 
The Lady Tigers came out of the break and used an 11-4 run, capped by a McKinney layup, to extend the Grambling State lead to 44-36 with 6:15 left in the third.
 
Grambling State dominated the third quarter and outscored McNeese, 24-12, to take a 60-43 lead into the fourth quarter.
 
The Lady Tigers pushed the margin to 67-45 after a Boyd layup with 8:02 left and the Cowgirls could never recover as Grambling State picked up its second win of the season.
 
Inside the Numbers
· Grambling State shot 43.1 percent (28-of-65) from the field and 75 percent (10-of-25) from the free-throw line.
· The Lady Tigers sank 10 3-pointers and shot 40 percent from behind the arc.
· McNeese was 20-of-52 shooting (38.5 percent) from the floor and 60 percent (15-of-25) from the charity stripe.
· The Lady Tigers registered 44 rebounds, including 25 off the defensive glass.
· The Cowgirls tallied 31 rebounds, with 12 of those coming on the offensive end.
· Grambling State finished with 39 bench points, 32 points in the paint, 23 points off 16 Cowgirl turnovers and 19 second-chance points.
· McNeese registered 20 points in the paint, 20 points off 20 Grambling State turnovers, nine second-chance points and eight bench points.
· There were no ties and just one lead change.
 
News and Notes
· Grambling State got back into the win column after back-to-back losses to Xavier and Florida State.
· The Lady Tigers will take seven days off before playing host to Southeastern Louisiana on Nov. 30
· The Southeastern Louisiana game will be the final home game for the Lady Tigers in 2017.
· With the win, Grambling State improved to 6-2 all-time against McNeese.

BOX SCORE
 
Up Next
Grambling State returns to action on Thursday, Nov. 30 against Southeastern Louisiana. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. at the Fredrick C. Hodby Assembly Center.
 
Follow Grambling State Athletics
For complete coverage of Grambling State athletics, please follow the Tigers on social media at @GSU_Tigers (Twitter), /gramblingstateathletics (Facebook), @gramblingathletics01 (Instagram) or visit the official home of Grambling State Athletics at gsutigers.com.

GRAMBLING STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION