McBee, Buggs Power No. 11 Purdue Calumet to 84-70 Win at Judson

PUC-PeregrinsThe No. 11 Purdue University Calumet women’s basketball team used a stellar second-half defensive stand to hold off conference foe Judson University on the road Wednesday night for a 84-70 victory.

The Peregrines (17-4, 9-2 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference) maintained their first-place spot in the CCAC South Division by holding the Eagles (8-15, 4-7) to just nine second-half field goals and 25.7 shooting performance from the field after Purdue Calumet entered halftime with just a one-point lead, 45-44.

Junior Patrice McBee (Monterey, Ind./Culver Community) had a monster game for the Peregrines, totaling 19 points and 15 rebounds for her team-leading 10th double-double of the season, while classmate Jada Buggs (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial) scored a team-high 21 points on 8 of 15 shooting.

Senior Kami Graber (Nashville, Ind./Brown County) added 14 points and four assists, sophomore Cassidy Deno (Otterbein, Ind./Benton Central) had 11 points and three steals and sophomore Darien Thompson (Anderson, Ind./Anderson) chipped in 10 points and two takeaways to round out the Peregrines in double figures.

Purdue Calumet finished the game shooting 40.6 percent (28 of 69) from the field compared to 36.8 percent (25 of 68) for the Eagles, who shot a blistering 48.5 percent in the first half to jump out to as much as a 20-8 advantage in the first 20 minutes.

The Peregrines also benefited from five timely 3-point goals, shooting 5 of 10 from behind the arc in the second half after starting the first frame 0-4. Deno drained two of those triples, and Thompson, Buggs and senior Stephanie Balon (Wanatah, Ind./South Central) each had one.

Diamond Courts led the Eagles, who have lost six straight to the Peregrines, with 20 points and eight rebounds and teammate Kelli Ludwig added 17 points in the setback.

For Purdue Calumet, McBee tied her season-high of 15 rebounds, marking the 11th time she’s recorded more than 10 boards in a game this season.

The Peregrines return to action Saturday, Jan. 31, when they travel to Bourbonais, Ill., for a big matchup with CCAC South Division second-place Olivet Nazarene (16-7, 8-4). Purdue Calumet won the first matchup between the two teams this season, setting the program record for points in a game in a 122-91 win over the Tigers Nov. 19, 2014.