Dec. 29, 2002

Final Stats

Peoria, Ill. - The Saint Louis University women's basketball team run its winning streak to five with an 80-44 victory at Bradley on Sunday afternoon in Peoria, Ill. Melissa Oliver paced four Billikens in double figures with 14 points. The five-game winning streak is the longest by Saint Louis since the Billikens strung together five straight from Dec. 16, 2000 through Dec. 31, 2000.

The Billikens used an early 6-0 run to take a 12-8 lead. The Bills still led 17-13 with 9:10 to play in the first half before going on an 11-2 run, including nine straight points for a 26-15 lead four minutes before halftime. SLU then scored eight of the last 11 points of the half to assume a 34-18 break at intermission. The Billikens shot 48.3 percent from the field in the half and held the Braves to just 28.6 on eight-of-28 shooting. Melissa Oliver had six points and six rebounds in the opening half.

The Bills effectively took control by opening the second half on an 11-2 run. Angie Lewis converted a layup 10 seconds into the second half, and Jana Haywood banked in a jumper from the left. Harmonie King sank a 3-pointer from the top of the key. After a BU basket, Star Jackson and King hit driving shots in the lane as the Billikens grabbed their largest lead of the game 45-20 with 17:19 to play. Bradley called timeout and responded with a 10-2 run and cut the deficit to 47-30 at the 13:29 mark. Bradley twice cut the lead to 15, the last at 55-40, but King sank a clutch 3-pointer with 5:20 to play and the Bills cruised down the stretch. The Billikens ended the game on a 20-2 run.

Oliver hit seven-of-nine from the field in posting her 14 points. Stephanie Solomon finished with a career-high 12 points on five-of-six shooting. Angie Lewis and Harmonie King both chipped in 11 points. Lewis paced the Billikens with a game-high seven rebounds. Star Jackson dished out eight assists without a turnover in 37 minutes of action. Sara Bailey led Bradley with 15 points but was only seven-of-19 from the field. The Billikens shot a season-high 53.3 percent from the field and held the Braves to just 34.5 percent. The Bills also outrebounded Bradley 42-32.

The Billikens improve to 9-3 on the season, while Bradley drops to 4-5. The Billikens continue on their three-game road swing on Tue, Jan. 2, with a 7 p.m. game at UMKC.