Huskies fall to No. 2 Panthers 79-62

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - All-American Paige Robinson scored 36 points and No. 2 Drury University used a 17-1 third-quarter run to bury Michigan Tech 79-62 Saturday night in non-conference women's basketball at O'Reilly Events Center. The Huskies led by seven at halftime but committed 24 turnovers and shot 18-percent from 3-point range to doom their chance to snap Drury's seven-game win streak. Alana Findley also contributed 14 points and eight rebounds for the Panthers, who improved to 12-1 overall. Michigan Tech fell to 8-3 and plays Sunday at Lindenwood in St. Charles, Missouri at 6 p.m. est.

Ellie Mackay posted 18 points in the loss for Tech and shot 7-for-14 from the field. The Huskies shot 40-percent (24-for-60) overall but connected on just five baskets on 27 three-point tries.

"I was super proud of how we came out and held Drury to nine points in the first quarter," said head coach Sam Clayton. "I thought even in the second quarter, we had just a couple of miscues and were pretty sharp defensively. The biggest thing is just taking care of the basketball. When you take of the ball, you can stop them but when we turn it over, that's when they score and go on their runs. We looked like two completely different teams from the first half to the second. Somehow our mindset changed and we made 15 turnovers in the second half. Drury didn't drastically change their defense so ultimately it's on us to be better."

The Huskies held Drury to just one basket on their first 13 shot attempts to lead 19-9 after the first quarter. The Panthers started to find room on the outside and knocked down multiple 3-pointers but Tech matched Drury with points in the paint for a 41-34 halftime advantage. 

Robinson and Asia Lynch both scored for Drury 28 seconds into the third quarter and Finlay made a steal which Robinson turned into 3-points in transition. The Huskies failed to muster a basket for the next six minutes of play and DU snatched their first lead 43-42 on Findley's jump shot. Shots began to fall again for Tech, but costly turnovers allowed the Panthers to pull away.

"We felt that we were right there with one of the best teams in the nation, but we have to put together that full 40-minute game," Clayton said. "Overall, I was proud of our effort. It's just about learning from every game and getting better. Robinson is an outstanding player with 36 points tonight. I thought we did a decent job defending her but she just made some difficult shots."

Katelyn Meister added 12 points for the Huskies and Isabella Lenz scored seven points off the bench. Saturday's loss marked the first time the Huskies have lost back-to-back games since February 20, 2020. Drury out-rebounded Tech 44-39. 

Robinson and Findley led all players with eight rebounds apiece. Drury nabbed 14 steals compared to 10 for MTU. Robinson collected 36 points on 14 of 29 shooting, including 6-6 from the free throw line with eight rebounds and a team-high four steals.