Freshman Stephanie Cherry tallied a career-high 13 points but Montana State shot 49.1 percent from the field (27-for-55) as the Bobcats defeated the Sacramento State women’s basketball team, 71-39, in a Big Sky Conference game Thursday evening at Worthington Arena. Sacramento State is now 1-17 overall and 1-4 in the Big Sky while Montana State improved to 9-8, 1-3.
Cherry, a native of Fairfield, Calif., was the only Hornet to score in double figures after going 3-for-7 from the three-point line and 4-for-6 from the free-throw line. Cherry has now recorded double-figure scoring in two-consecutive games for the first time in her Hornet career. It also marked the second time she has led the team in scoring.
Katie Burrows led the Bobcats with a game-high 15 points after going 5-of-7 from the field and 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. She also finished with a contest-high 10 rebounds, three assists and four steals. Joanna Hixon (14) and Sheila Hutchison (10) also scored in double figures for the Bobcats.
In the first half, Montana State took an early 9-1 lead at the 14:07 mark and increased their lead to 30-8 (5:28) with a 21-7 run. The Hornets cut the margin to 30-13 with a 5-0 run but MSU finished the period with a 9-0 run to take a 39-13 halftime lead.
In the second half, Montana State controlled play throughout the period as the Bobcats never trailed by less than 30 points after the 14:25 mark.
Overall, Sacramento State went 11-for-60 (.183) from the floor while San Jose State ended the contest shooting 27-for-55 (.491). The Hornets also finished 13-for-20 (.650) from the free-throw line compared to the Bobcats’ 15-for-23 (.652) effort.
The contest marked the Hornets’ worse loss since a 70-39 contest against San Jose State on Dec. 9. Sacramento State’s field-goal percentage was also the lowest of the season.
Sacramento State will next travel to Montana to face the Lady Griz on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 6:35 p.m. PST.
