Fayette, Mo. - The CMU women's basketball team fell to Baker University by a score of 84-72 Thursday night inside Puckett Fieldhouse.
With the loss, the Eagles fall to 4-3 overall and 3-3 in conference play. Baker improves to 5-3 overall and 4-2 in the Heart.
Baker took an early 8-6 lead with 5:36 left in the first quarter, and the Wildcats stretched their lead to double digits in the second frame, 23-12. Central went on a 9-2 run in the opening three minutes of the second quarter to trim the lead to seven. But BU's sharpshooters continued to convert from long-range, knocking down four three-point baskets in the quarter, giving the Wildcats a 42-30 lead over CMU entering halftime
In the third quarter, the Eagles' cut the Wildcats lead to only three points with 5:03 left. However, Baker was able to pull away once again and opened up a 10-point lead with 1:21 left. Baskets by both Michelle Nicholls and Leah Johnson gave hope to the Eagles who only trailed by six entering the final quarter. But the Wildcats would go on to win by a final score of 84-72.
R'Manie Pulling once again led the Eagles' offense with 25 points, including three three-point baskets. She also added three assists and two rebounds in 34 minutes of action.
The pair of Vanda Cuamba and Johnson both collected double-doubles, as Cuamba recorded 10 points and 11 rebounds while Johnson added 15 points and 12 rebounds with nine coming on the offensive glass. It marks Johnson's fourth double-double of the season
As a team, the Eagles shot 31.1-percent from the field while the Wildcats shot 42.9-percent, including 35-percent from beyond the arc. From the charity stripe, Central converted on 60.6-percent of its free-throw attempts compared to 78.4-percent for Baker. The Eagles fell short in the battle of the boards, grabbing 46 rebounds while the Wildcats collected 48.
The CMU defense forced 19 turnovers on 10 steals, picking up 11 points off of turnovers. Baker's bench proved to be the difference, scoring 53 of the team's 84 points.
The Eagles will be back in Puckett Fieldhouse on Saturday, Dec. 12 to face MidAmerica Nazarene at 2:00 p.m. in the second game of a three-game homestand.
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