Turnovers Prove Costly in Loss to Southern Miss

Tuesday, December 20

Las Vegas, Nev.

3 p.m.

Xavier University

7-3

Southern Mississippi

8-3

Xavier

Southern Mississippi

Turnovers Prove Costly in Loss to Southern Miss

12.20.16 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Season Stats (PDF)Box Score (PDF)

Women’s basketball falls, 73-59, on Tuesday afternoon

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

LAS VEGAS - Xavier women's basketball committed a season-high 24 turnovers on Tuesday afternoon, falling to Southern Miss, 73-59, at the Puerto Rico Classic - Las Vegas.

The Musketeers moved to 7-3 on the year, while the Golden Eagles improved to 8-3.

NOTABLES

• Xavier committed 18 of its 24 turnovers in the first half. The Golden Eagles turned the miscues into 29 points.

• Marquia Turner led Xavier with 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting with all 14 points coming in the second quarter. She was also 3-for-5 from behind the arc and pulled down a team-high five rebounds, while dishing out a game-high six assists.

• Imani Partlow scored in double figures for the third time this season, posting 11 points on 3-for-7 shooting. The sophomore forward added four rebounds.

• Kindell Fincher scored 10 points on 3-for-9 shooting with three 3-pointers. The guard added three rebounds and an assist.

• Raeshaun Gaffney was held under 10 points for the first time this season as the senior guard finished with nine points. Jada Byrd chipped in eight points and five rebounds in the loss.

• Xavier hit eight 3-pointers for the second time in as many games. The Musketeers were also out rebounded for the second straight game (36-29).

FIRST QUARTER

• Raeshaun Gaffney hit back-to-back three pointers to open the game, giving Xavier a 6-2 advantage. The first quarter featured four ties and four lead changes before the Golden Eagles pulled ahead for a 17-16 advantage after one quarter of action.

SECOND QUARTER

• Southern Miss opened the second quarter on a 9-2 run to take its largest lead of the half, 26-18, before Xavier went on a 19-6 run to take its largest lead of the game, 37-32, at the 3:25 mark. The Musketeers were held scoreless for the remainder of the half as Southern Miss took a 38-37 lead into the locker room.

• Marquia Turner scored 14 points on 5-for-5 shooting with three 3-pointers. Xavier hit 57.1 percent of its shot attempts in the frame (8-for-14).

THIRD QUARTER

• Southern Miss opened the second half on an 11-2 run to take its first double-figure lead of the game, 49-39, at the 4:55 mark. Xavier closed the gap to four points (52-48) on a Kindell Fincher three pointer in the closing seconds of the quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

• Xavier made it a two possession game with 2:26 left in regulation, but couldn't overcome a .200 field-goal percentage (2-for-10) in the final quarter. Southern Miss would go 8-for-8 from the foul line in the final quarter to seal the win. The Golden Eagles also hit 50 percent (6-for-12) of their shot attempts.

UP NEXT

• Tournament action concludes on Thursday, Dec. 21 against Kennesaw State at 7:45 p.m. EST.