Women’s basketball team opens 2019-20 season with 64-50 win over Defiance

OLIVET, Mich. – The Olivet College women's basketball team used a balanced scoring attack to open its 2019-20 season with a 64-50 win over Defiance (Ohio) College this evening at The Cutler Event Center in Olivet.

Final Score: Olivet 64, Defiance (Ohio) 50
Location: The Cutler Event Center; Olivet, Mich.
Records: Defiance 0-1 overall, Olivet 1-0 overall

• The Comets scored the first eight points of the game. The Yellow Jackets did not score a point until the 3:11 mark of the opening quarter. Olivet settled for a 10-6 lead at the end of the first period.
• Defiance scored the first five points of the second quarter to take their first lead of the game, 11-10, at the 8:43 mark. The teams traded baskets for two more lead changes. After a three-pointer by senior Amari Brown put the Comets on top, 19-18, senior Tammy Lee made a layup and three-pointer to push their lead to six points. The Yellow Jackets drained 3-of-4 free throws to trim their deficit in half.
• Olivet answered with a 6-2 run to take a seven-point lead, 30-23, at the 1:52 mark of the second quarter. Defiance fought back with a 7-1 spurt to close the gap to a single point. Two free throws by senior Jazmin Hildebrand made the score 33-30 at halftime
• The Yellow Jackets trailed by just one point twice in the third quarter. After the last time at 37-36, freshman Zara Weber made a three-pointer for a 40-36 Comet lead. Defiance was down only three points, 43-40, entering the fourth quarter.
• Olivet extended its lead to as many as 16 points, 59-43, with 2:56 left in the game. The Yellow Jackets were never able to get their deficit into single digits.

• For the game, Olivet shot 35.0 percent (21-of-60) from the floor compared to 23.3 percent (17-of-73) for Defiance. The Comets made 11 baskets from behind the arc to just two for the Yellow Jackets. Olivet turned the ball over five less times, 14-19.
• Four Olivet starters reached double figures in the scoring column.
• Brown led all players with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-6 from three-point. She also pulled down a team-best eight rebounds.
• Lee added 12 points, with three three-pointers.
• Freshman Hannah Brown contributed 11 points, with three triples.
• Junior Fayth Talbert scored 10 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked seven shots.

• Taylor Day led Defiance with nine points, followed by Kalyn Pickens with eight.
• Danielle Carruthers grabbed a game-best 10 rebounds.

• Amari Brown's 20 points was a career-high.
• Talbert's seven blocks broke Olivet's single-game record. She and two others had six in a game.
• The 14-point margin of victory was the largest in the Comets' season-opener since the first game of the 2005 season.
• Olivet's 11 three-pointers ties for the eighth-most in school history for a single-game.

• Olivet welcomes Bluffton (Ohio) University to The Cutler Event Center Saturday for a non-conference game, starting at 2 p.m.