EDWARDSVILLE - Ajulu Thatha recorded her second double-double of the season, but SIUE women's basketball couldn't overcome a strong shooting effort from Eastern Illinois in a 77-65 loss Monday at First Community Arena.
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Thatha tied Kelsie Williams for SIUE honors in scoring with 14 points. Thatha pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds while adding three assists and two blocks.
SIUE dropped to 4-5 overall and 1-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Eastern Illinois is now 4-7 overall and 2-4 in the OVC.
Eastern Illinois used a pair of back-to-back three-pointers in the final 45 seconds of the first period to take a seven-point lead at 16-9. That seven-point lead extended to halftime at 30-23, but the Panthers pushed the lead into double digits during the third period.
"Offensively, we couldn't get into a flow," said SIUE Head Coach Paula Buscher.
EIU shot 53.8 percent from the field (28-52) and 50 percent from three-point range (11-22).
"We didn't have great rotations, and they knocked down shots," credited Buscher.
SIUE's Mikayla Kinnard picked up her second double-digit effort of the season with 11 points.
EIU's Karle Pace led all scorers with 20 points, including four three-pointers. Morgan Litwiller was one-point shy of her career-high with 17 that included a team-leading five three-pointers.
"I like this group and their work ethic," Buscher said of the Cougars. "We just weren't working collectively that we needed to get the win."
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