Box Score CLEVELAND—Riding high on a three game winning streak, the Lady Statesmen basketball team looked to continue rolling, as they hosted Alabama-Huntsville Thursday night in Sillers Coliseum. The Lady Statesmen controlled the first half, and never looked back as they came away with the 92-74 victory. The victory was the fourth-in-a-row for the Lady Statesmen, and they handed the Chargers their first conference loss.

The Lady Statesmen (10-4, 4-1 GSC) controlled most of the first half behind a career performance from senior guard Denesha Henderson. Henderson scored a career-high 14 points in the first 10 minutes of the game, and added two more for a total of 16 in the opening half.

As a team, the Lady Statesmen shot 20-of-38 from the floor good for 53 percent. Also, all eight of the Lady Statesmen who played in the first half scored.

Alabama-Huntsville (13-3, 4-1 GSC) shot 12-of-33 from the floor as a team, good for 36 percent. Jordan Smith led the Chargers in scoring for the first half with 10 points.

The Chargers made a run to start the second half to get back into the game. Huntsville cut their deficit down to single digits on numerous occasions, but the Lady Statesmen fought back each time.

Just like with Henderson in the first half, the second half became Veronica Walker time. The senior forward from Indianola, Miss. secured her eighth double double of the season in the second half.

The Lady Statesmen made their final surge in the final 10 minutes of the game. The Lady Statesmen scored 32 points over the final 12 minutes of the game. For the game the Lady Statesmen shot 32-of-62 from the floor, good for 52 percent.

Henderson led all scorers in the game, and smashed her previous career-high in points as she finished with 28. Walker finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Three more Lady Statesmen finished in double figures as sophomore guard Brooke Rhodes scored 12, freshman forward Rhandi Ball scored 11, and junior guard Brittany Roberts scored 10.
Jasmine Hammon led the Chargers in scoring with 24 points. Smith scored 19, and Natalie Kelley scored 10 to get into double figures. The Chargers shot 23-62 from the floor for the game, good for 37 percent.

The Lady Statesmen forced 14 turnovers, and scored 21 points off of Charger miscues. Huntsville scored 15 points off of 12 Lady Statesmen turnovers. The Lady Statesmen out rebounded Huntsville 44-31 for the game.

With the victory, the Lady Statesmen pull into a tie with Alabama-Huntsville atop the Gulf South Conference standings. The Lady Statesmen hit the road for their next match-up as they take on North Alabama on Saturday in Florence, Ala. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.