Truman State boxscore in PDF

By Jim Powers
 
Maryville used a strong defensive game plan and was able to take advantage of a cold-shooting Truman State team to notch a 72-64 victory on the road at Pershing Arena.  The road victory snapped a three-game losing streak that started at Wisconwin-Parkside nine days ago.
 
The Saints defensive effort started at the onset as the Saints held the Bulldogs scoreless for the first eight minutes and 21 seconds to take a 7-0 lead. Senior sharp shooter Shelby Miller knocked down a pair of shots, including a triple from the left wing during the stretch to get Maryville heading on the right track. The Bulldogs would reel off the next six points to cut the lead to one, but the Saints would then go on a 11-0 run over the next three minutes. Jordyn Martin poured in eight of those points to give the Saints a 18-6 advantage with eight minutes and 34 seconds left in the half.  Defense continued to be the theme the rest of the half as Maryville headed into the halftime locker room with a 35-22 edge. Miller would finish the half with 13 points while Martin would add 12 markers. The Saints defense threw off the Truman attack as the Bulldogs struggled from the field, shooting 6-of-34 in the first stanza.
 
Maryville (9-6, 3-3 GLVC) extended its lead on a Miller triple from the right corner to 48-31 with a little more than fifteen and a half minutes remaining in the game. Truman would finally string together points as they would put go on a 19-6 run over the next eight minutes to cut the Saints lead to 54-50 with seven minutes 55 remaining in the contest, but that is as close as the Bulldogs would get. Maryville would use the foul line to their advantage by going 12-of-14 from the charity stripe to seal the victory.
 
Miller would finish with a season-high 27 points while adding eight rebounds and an assist to pace the Saints. Martin added 17 points on the afternoon, while Jade Rogers continued to impress with her second career double-double, tossing in 10 points and grabbing 10 boards. Rita Flynn also grabbed ten caroms for Maryville in the big victory.
 
Truman (9-6, 3-4 GLVC) would finish 24-of-72 from the field in the game and ended the afternoon with three players in double figures. Ashley Hartwig led the scoring for the Bulldogs with 17 points, while Allie Norton added 14 and Courtney Strait chipped in with 11 points.
 
Maryville returns to action Monday, Jan. 19, for a date with their cross-town rivals University of Missouri-St. Louis at the Simon Center. Tip-off time is set for 5:30 p.m.