Lady Flames Tip Off ASUN Play with 65-49 Victory at Stetson

Jan 5, 2022 | DeLand Fla | Women's Basketball

Liberty tipped off ASUN Conference play and the year 2022 much the same way it closed out non-conference action in 2021. Strong post play and another impressive defensive effort propelled the Lady Flames past Stetson, 65-49, Wednesday evening at the Edmunds Center.

Despite only having nine players available for the conference opener, Liberty improves to 13-1 with its 10^th consecutive win. Paced by the post duo of Mya Berkman (21 points, 9-10 FG, 6 rebounds) and Jordan Bailey (14 points, 8 rebounds), the Lady Flames start off ASUN play with a win for the third year in a row.

Stetson falls to 7-7 overall and begins ASUN action at 0-1 after losing its fifth straight head-to-head meeting with the Lady Flames. The Hatters shot just 37.8 percent (17-of-45) from the field and committed 19 turnovers, becoming the ninth opponent Liberty has held below the 50-point mark in 14 games this season.

Box Score Highlights
Other Liberty Individuals: Kennedi Williams – 9 points, 7 assists; Nenna Lindstrom – 9 points, 3-10 3FG; Dee Brown – 8 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals.

Stetson Individuals: Tatiana Streun – 12 points; Mali Morgan-Elliott – 7 points, 2-4 3FG; Yazz Wazeerud-Din – 7 points, 3 steals; Jamiya Turner – 6 points, 7 rebounds.

Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 47.1 percent (24-of-51) from the floor, outscoring the Hatters inside the paint, 34-26. The Lady Flames recorded 21 assists on their 24 made field goals. Liberty won the rebounding battle, 31-25, and scored 16 points off Stetson’s 19 turnovers. The Hatters became only the third opposing team to outscore Liberty in bench points in 2021-22, by a 18-4 margin.

Turning Point
Kiya Turner got Stetson off to a fast start in the third quarter, tallying a three-point play at the 8:47 mark which pulled her team within 32-30.

However, the Hatters shot just 2-of-10 and committed five turnovers during the remainder of the period as Liberty broke the game open with a 17-4 run. Dee Brown punctuated the surge with a three-pointer at the third quarter buzzer, sending the visitors to the final period with a 49-34 advantage.

Liberty’s lead remained at a dozen points or larger the rest of the way.

Game Summary
First Quarter

Mya Berkman scored 10 first-quarter points on 4-of-4 from the field to pace the Lady Flames.
However, Stetson shot 7-of-9 from the foul line, including five free throws during the stanza’s final 23 seconds which gave the Hatters a 16-15 edge through 10 minutes. It was only the second time this season that Liberty trailed at the end of the first quarter.

Second Quarter

Aided by a pair of Nenna Lindstrom triples, Liberty opened the second quarter on a 14-4 run. The Lady Flames led 29-20 on Berkman’s transition layup, 3:55 before halftime.
The host Hatters then tallied five of the half’s final six points, pulling to within five (32-27) at the intermission.

Third Quarter

Liberty outscored Stetson 17-7 during the pivotal third period, despite Berkman being held scoreless. Brown sparked the Lady Flames with five points and five boards for the stanza.

Fourth Quarter

The duo of Berkman and Bailey sealed the Liberty win during the fourth quarter, combining for 15 of the Lady Flames’ 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field.

Notes and Nuggets

Berkman’s game-high 21 points marked her third career 20-point outing and second this season. She also came up with a career-high three steals.
Dating back to Thursday’s win over Lee, Berkman made 14 straight field goal attempts before misfiring during the fourth quarter.
Berkman’s 90 percent field goal shooting (9-of-10) on Wednesday is tied for fifth best in program history, with a minimum of 10 attempts.
Berkman scored her 700^th career point on Wednesday and moved to within six rebounds of 500.
Making her first career start, Bailey scored in double figures for the fourth time in five games with her 14 markers and matched her career high of eight boards.
Also appearing in the starting lineup for the first time, Lindstrom equaled career highs for points (9) and three-pointers (3).
Williams’ seven assists fell one shy of her career high, and the point guard has now dished out 15 helpers in the last two games.
Brown set a new career high of six assists while tying her career best of nine rebounds.
Four of Liberty’s five starters set career highs for minutes played, including Brown (39), Bailey (36), Lindstrom (34) and Berkman (33).
Liberty has now recorded 45 assists on 50 made field goals during its last two games.
The Lady Flames have posted a winning streak of 10 games or longer during back-to-back seasons. Liberty went on an 11-game winning streak between Dec. 9, 2020 and Jan. 31, 2021.
Liberty’s last eight victories have all come by 15 points or more.
Liberty has won nine straight January games and is 153-27 during the month under Carey Green.
The Lady Flames improve to 4-10 when facing ASUN opponents in Florida since joining the conference in 2018-19, as compared with a 36-7 mark in all other states.

Up Next
Liberty will now prepare for its ASUN Conference home opener, Saturday against Kennesaw State (4-7, 0-0 ASUN). Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m. for the Owls’ first visit to Liberty Arena.