ST. PAUL, Minn. – Bouncing back from Saturday's loss at Saint Mary's, the No. 11th-ranked Bethel University women's basketball team responded the best way possible earning a huge road win at No. 19 St. Thomas, 65-49. The Royals defense set the tone forcing 28 turnovers and holding the Tommies to a season-low in points.
Forcing UST to shoot 35.7 percent (15-of-42) from the floor compared to its 40.8 percent (20-of-49), Bethel improves to 21-1 on the year and 16-1 in conference play. The Royals can lock up one of the top two seeds in the MIAC playoffs with a win Saturday at Gustavus Adolphus. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. in St. Peter.
Not much stood in the way of senior
Taite Anderson who dropped 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting. In 22 minutes of action the senior forward grabbed six boards and was 6-for-7 from the charity stripe.
Haylee Barker finished with 14 points, four steals, three assists and two rebounds.
The remaining seven players to see action all found the scoring column staying within single digits and all grabbed at least one rebound.
Anderson scored 12 of Bethel's first 14 points before
Kat Brown-Erdal knocked down a trey giving the Royals a two-point lead after trailing by one to start the second quarter. Another three from Brown-Erdal, this time in transition, sparked a 10-0 run sending BU into the locker room with a 31-25 advantage.
The Royals held UST scoreless from behind the arc in the third quarter where the lead got no bigger than nine. Bethel limited its fourth quarter turnovers to a pair while Barker did not miss a shot scoring 10 of the Royals 21 points. Bethel put it away at the free throw line where it gained its largest lead of 18 points before the final horn.
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