A 12-minute field goal drought by the Brown and Gold allowed Green Bay to run away with an 87-45 victory Thursday night at the Kress Events Center.
Jasmyn Walker (Muskegon, Mich./Mona Shores) led the way for Valpo as she collected her fifth double-double, posting 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Valpo endured a prolonged field goal drought in the middle of the opening period. Walker hit a layup with 14:51 on the clock. The Brown and Gold missed their next 19 shots before Lexi Miller (Caledonia, Mich./Caledonia) brought an end to the skid with a nifty and-1 at the 2:44 mark. Miller finished with 12 points.
On the other side, Green Bay embarked on a 23-0 run to push a 13-9 lead to 36-9. The Phoenix led 45-15 at halftime.
Green Bay restricted Valparaiso to 5-of-31 shooting in the first half. All 13 of the Crusaders' attempts from beyond the arc were off the mark.
The Phoenix shot the deep ball exceptionally well. They were 1-for-7 from three-point range at the 12-minute media timeout of the first half, but connected on 11 of their subsequent 17 tries. Green Bay ended the night with a 48% (12-25) figure from beyond the arc
Valpo doubled its offensive output in the second half, but the margin was too wide.
Green Bay (21-4, 11-1 Horizon) had five players in double figures. Sophomore Tesha Buck led all scorers with 16 points while Ellen Edison finished with 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting from downtown.
The Phoenix defense forced 24 Crusader turnovers.
The win also marked Green Bay head coach Kevin Borseth's 600th career victory.
Valpo (6-18, 2-9 Horizon) will return to Northwest Indiana to host Youngstown State (18-7, 7-5 Horizon) on Saturday afternoon. The contest will serve as Valpo’s Play 4 Kay Breast Cancer Awareness game. Players and coaches will don pink apparel to show their support for breast cancer awareness. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:35 pm CT at the Athletics-Recreation Center.
