EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Wayne State University women's basketball team (3-1 overall) suffered its first setback of the 2017-18 campaign, falling 77-54 to host Southern Indiana (4-0 overall) on Saturday night.

Sophomore Nastassja Chambers (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Arbor Prep) led all scorers with 18 points.  Senior Shannon Wilson (West Bloomfield, Mich. / Bloomfield Hills) added 15, and senior Payton Birchmeier (Corunna, Mich.) had a game-high 10 rebounds go to with three steals and a block.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Warriors scored the first two buckets in the opening minutes of the contest, but went into an offensive lull, failing to register points for a span of 4:08.  Meanwhile, the Screaming Eagles went on an 11-0 run in that window to take the lead and expand it to 11-4.

Chambers ended the drought with a bucket with 5:16 left in the first, and Wilson drained a triple to the advantage for USI to 11-9.  The Eagles' Randa Harshbarger went to the other end and connected on a triple, and after another Southern Indiana field goal, Chambers went to the bucket, drew a foul and made two free throws to make it 16-11.

Late in the quarter USI hit one more shot thanks to Ashley Johnson, as well as two free throws by Imani Guy, but junior India Hawkins (Detroit, Mich. / Edison Public School Academy) drilled a three to make it 20-14 after 10 minutes.

Southern Indiana outscored WSU 20-16 in the second, thanks in large part to three three-pointers and 3-for-4 shooting from the free throw line.  It gave the Screaming Eagles a 40-30 lead, but the Warriors were far from out of it, and had weathered the storm from being down as much as 16 just 3:12 before the break.

Wayne State tried to respond out of the break, as Wilson drew a foul and hit a pair of free throws just nine seconds into the period.  USI's Kaydie Grooms hit layups on consecutive possessions to move the lead to 12 (44-32), but later in the quarter, Wilson hit a layup, followed by a score by Chambers and another field goal by Wilson. Past the midway point in the third, WSU found itself down just six.

That was as close as the Warriors would come to a victory.  USI went on a 10-2 to close the quarter, hit two more jumpers to start the fourth and, after a three-pointer by Hawkins, went on another 5-0 run.  By then, the contest was 65-45 with 6:01 to play, and the advantage was too much to overtime.

UP NEXT

Wayne State will host its first contest of the season on Tuesday, bringing in Wright State Lake for a 5:30 p.m. tip.