Box Score Box Score

CHICAGO – Fifth-seeded Houston Baptist had first-half runs of 7-0, 8-0 and 13-0 to build a big lead, but had to hold on down the stretch for a 77-66 win over fourth-seeded Chicago State in the quarterfinals of the Great West Conference Tournament Thursday night at the Jones Convocation Center. The Huskies advance to the semifinals, where they will face top-seeded Utah Valley Friday at 2:30 p.m.
 
Sophomore forward Shanice Steenholdt led five Huskies in double figures with 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Taylor Jefferson added 13 points and five steals for the Huskies (7-23). Sophomore guard Wiebke Bruns, sophomore forward Erin McGarrachan and freshman guard Rachel Arthur each had 10 points for the Huskies, while freshman forward Monet Neal came off the bench for eight. McGarrachan led HBU with eight boards, and Bruns pulled down six.
 
Tierra Williams shot 9-of-21 from the field to lead the Cougars (4-26) with 25 points. Chanel Wilson-Stewart posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Jackie Jones also had 13 points. Paris Williams chipped in with six points and nine boards.
 
Chicago State took an 11-9 lead with 14:27 to go, but HBU scored the next seven on a pair of free throws by Steenholdt, a three by Arthur and a layup by Steenholdt to lead 16-11 with 12:39 to go. The Cougars scored on a layup by Wilson-Stewart to get within three, but the Huskies went on an 8-0 run. Neal scored on back-to-back layups to get it started, Steenholdt added a layup, then Neal scored again to make the score 24-13 with 8:13 on the clock.
 
The Cougars scored a bucket and a pair of free throws to get back within seven with 7:07 remaining, but a 13-0 spurt over the next four minutes gave the Huskies a 20-point lead at 37-17. Jefferson sparked the run with a three, then Steenholdt scored eight-straight points, before Jefferson capped it with a layup. The Huskies took a 41-24 lead into halftime.
 
HBU shot 53 percent in the first half and hit 3-of-9 from behind the arc and 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Chicago State shot 31 percent, but only 1-of-6 from long range, and made 7-of-8 at the line. The Cougars outrebounded the Huskies, 18-16, but committed 13 turnovers to HBU's seven. Steenholdt led HBU with 14 points in the half, while Wilson-Steward had eight for Chicago State.
 
The two teams traded baskets in the early going of the second half, with Williams scoring six-straight for the Cougars, while McGarrachan knocked down a jumper and Bruns had back-to-back layups to match. The Huskies led, 45-30, then scored seven-straight points, capped by a layup by Steenholdt to give HBU its largest lead of the game at 52-30 with 15:58 left.
 
The Huskies had their lead cut to 15 as Chicago State outscored HBU, 9-2, but Bruns scored four-straight to get the Huskies back on track. Layup by Bruns and McGarrachan pushed HBU's lead back to 20 at 62-42 with 7:34 left. HBU led by 21 with 7:07 remaining, but Chicago State scored eight-straight points over the next three minutes to cut its deficit to 13.
 
After a jumper by Pugh put the Huskies ahead, 67-53, with 3:05 to go, the Cougars scored six-straight to cut the lead to eight at the 1:47 mark. Jones hit a three to make the score 67-62 with 1:30 remaining, but Arthur answered with a layup on the other end. Chicago State would get no closer the rest of the way as HBU went on for an 11-point win.