On Feb. 5, the Wright State University (WSU) women’s basketball team pulled off a win of 70-67 against Purdue Fort Wayne (PFW) at The Nutter Center.
The Raiders put on an intense game on Thursday against the Mastodons while also debuting their pink jerseys.
From the moment the time clock started, WSU and PFW went back and forth putting points on the board. After a still eight minutes into the game, no points where being added by either team. Both teams had multiple turnovers and struggled to make any shots.
The energy started to turn up at the end of the first period with a good jumper made by senior guard, number 0 Breezie Williams, and two made free throws from another senior guard, number 5 Claire Henson.
Williams led the scoring with 28 points, shooting 11 of 13 from the field, and she stayed consistent throughout the game.
Williams spoke about her performance during the game. She expressed surprise when her game statistics were repeated back to her.
“Well, it was a confidence booster,” Williams said. “Wow, [I] wasn’t expecting that to be honest. But I mean it felt good, but what feels better is just getting the win together as a team. That matters more than anything, like I can score whatever, but setting up my team and seeing them knock down big time shots and all that stuff just means more.”
When it came to “knocking down big time shots,” Henson had 12 points helping secure the Raider win.
“We talked about how there was going to be ups and downs the rest of the second half, even if we were to go on a run, coming together, huddle after everything we do and stay confident through the end and I think everybody did,” Henson said.
Towards the end of the game, in the third period WSU was able to take the lead by 12 points. A three-point shot made by Williams raised the energy in the stadium. Soon PFW was putting up a fight with their defense, making a comeback to a two-point game.
WSU took the lead back, finishing the game with junior guard, Olivia Brown, making four back-to-back free-throws.
Head Coach Kari Hoffman reflected on the game and what the team plans to focus on for their next match against Indiana University Indy on Feb. 7.
“Turnovers, you can’t expect to win, and they’re a team that feeds off turnovers as well. They love to play in transition, so we need to make sure that we play our pace, and we control possession of the basketball,” Hoffman said.
WSU only has other teams in the Horizon League remaining to play. There will be two more home games at The Nutter Center this season.
