OKLAHOMA CITY – The 2017-18 Mid-America Christian University women's basketball season got underway Friday night at the Gaulke Activity Center, and the Lady Evangels opened up the new campaign in style.
MACU (1-0) had five players score in double-figures, led by newcomer Alexis Shannon's 24-point effort, as the Lady Evangels roared past Manhattan Christian College (0-1) for the 98-53 victory.
Shannon and Rebekah Wilson combined to score the game's first five points, and the Lady Evangels were off and running. Nevada Denton buried a 3-pointer with just under two minutes gone in the game to push the lead to 8-2, and Denton cashed in again on the fast break late in the first quarter to push the MACU lead to 17-7 before MCC made four free throws in the final 1:41 of the quarter to cut the Mid-America lead to 17-11 at the end of one.
The Lady Evangels opened the second frame on a 12-0 run that spanned just over four minutes, pushing their lead to 29-11, and the rout was on. The lead reached as many as 19 in the second stanza, and at halftime, MACU led 39-22.
Mykala Flores entered the lineup in the second half, and she immediately went to work, piloting the Lady Evangels on a 21-2 run over 4:43 that pushed the margin to 36 points at 60-24. The Lady Evangels out-scored MCC 34-12 in the period, and after three quarters of play, MACU led 73-34. In the fourth quarter, the lead reached as many as 45 points on three occasions, and MACU coasted home with the 98-53 win.
Shannon led the way with 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting in the game. Denton finished the night with 17 on 7-of-10 shooting including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, Flores had a dozen and seven assists, and Wilson and Ossyana Ozoani each scored 10. Ozoani led the way with eight rebounds including six on the offensive end of the floor.
As a team, MACU made 39-of-79 (49.4%) shots from the floor, 9-of-22 (40.9%) from long distance, and 11-of-15 (73.3%) from the charity stripe. The Lady Evangels dominated the game in virtually every statistical category, out-rebounding the Thunder 50-32, and outscoring them in each of the five enhanced scoring categories – including a 47-4 advantage in points off the bench.
MACU will be back in action on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. when they host the Bethel College Threshers (0-0) at the Gaulke Activity Center.
