Ravens Shut Down Yellow Jackets in HCAC Tournament

The Anderson University Ravens (6-6) defeated the visiting Defiance College Yellow Jackets (2-9) 60-41 in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Tournament opening round in O.C. Lewis Gymnasium on Friday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Ravens and the Yellow Jackets kept things close through the first quarter. The Ravens took the early lead, but by 6 minutes and 17 seconds remaining in the first quarter, the Yellow Jackets tied it up 11-11.
• The Ravens took back their lead and held onto it for the remainder of the quarter, leading the Yellow Jackets 23-17 at the end of quarter one.
• Quarter two was off to a slow start, with Defiance making two layups and Anderson one through the first four minutes.
• Through the remainder of the second quarter, the Ravens slowly built on their lead. Heading into halftime the Ravens led 35-26.
• Jade Shipley got the third quarter started with a three followed by a layup for the Ravens to build a 40-26-point lead.
• The third quarter was a low-scoring quarter on both ends of the court. Between the 6:44 and the 2:25 mark, neither team recorded a basket. The Ravens led 42-31 heading into the fourth and final quarter.
• The Ravens kept the baskets coming in the fourth quarter. A Lexi Dellinger three gave the Ravens a 19-point, 56-37 lead over the Yellow Jackets, their largest of the game. 2:25 remained on the clock.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Ravens were 20-47 (42.6%) from the field, and 5-12 (41.7%) from the three. The Ravens defense held strong, containing the Yellow Jackets to 15-of-62 (24.2% from the field.
• Dellinger led the Ravens with 18 points for the night. Dellinger contributed six rebounds and three assists as well.
• Payton Moore, who made her debut for the 2020-2021 season, came off the bench with 12 points, five rebounds, one assist, one steal, and two blocks.
• Shipley gave the Ravens 10 points, four rebounds one assist, and one steal.

COACH LINDSAY SHADE'S COMMENTS

• I am really proud of our players for the way they competed. It certainly wasn't pretty and I think we saw some nerves that come with that first post-season game, but eventually we settled in and found our groove defensively. 
• I thought our bench was really good. Mariah Clemons and Carly Holley provided some key minutes for the posts and did a great job on the glass. Cassie Pallett and Kristin Dubois are both really quick and put a lot of pressure on the defense with their dribble penetration. 
• Lexi [Dellinger] continues to attract a lot of attention defensively and still manages to find different ways to score for us. And I think we were all really happy to see Payton [Moore] on the floor. Given how long it's been since she has played in a game, I thought she did really well and obviously impacted the game significantly. 
• It's a quick turnaround for us to prepare for Bluffton but we will get a game plan ready and are looking forward to Wednesday. We split the regular season with them so it will be a great challenge! 

UP NEXT

The Ravens will now travel to take on the Bluffton University Beavers (14-5) on Wednesday in Bluffton, Ohio for the HCAC Tournament Quarterfinals. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.