The EMU women's basketball team played their season opener against Lindenwood at the George Gervin GameAbove Center with an attendance of 1,849 people.
The Eagles had a commanding 15-point victory over Lindwood with the final score of 71-56. Senior Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu had a double-double with 18 points and 11rebounds paired with Lachelle Austin who finished with 16 points and 7 assists. Freshman Olivia Smith added 13 points off of the bench for the Eagles as well.
Defensively, the front court of Ozzy-Momodu and Tayra Eke had the paint guarded at all times. The glove-like defense by the backcourt of Olivia Smith who had multiple steals and was a pest on the ball helped the team to get going on defense and further with getting transition offense.
The Eagles started the game off a little slow, but quickly picked it up as they went on an 8-0 run to obtain a 12-5 lead with 7:39 left in the first quarter. Lindenwood would strike back to end the first quarter, as the Eagles entered the second quarter up by only three points, 19-16.
EMU continued their lead throughout the second quarter with a little back-and-forth battle before the Eagles would go on another run, this time a 9-0 run, to extend their lead, 36-24, to end out the first half.
The Eagles absolutely dominated the paint, as 20 of their 36 first-half points came close to the basket.
EMU came out in the second half on fire as they continued to extend their lead, 44-29, and then went on a 7-0 run to put the lead at 51-29 with four minutes left in the third quarter.
Entering the fourth quarter, the Eagles held a lead of 55-40, but after a couple of back-and-forth baskets and then another run from EMU, the Eagles held a 64-45 lead with a little under five minutes left to go in the game. The Lions of Lindenwood would score a couple of more buckets, but with stellar bench play from EMU, the Eagles would soar to a 71-56 win over Lindenwood.
Austin was aggressive all game offensively with getting toward the basket and taking fouls and also did a great job leading the team with her point guard skills. The entire EMU offense was run through their centers Ozzy-Momodu and Eke. As Lindenwood was playing zone defense, EMU head coach Fred Castro was on point with the offensive and defensive settings.
Next up, the Eagles will travel to Edwardsville, Ill. on Nov. 13, to take on Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The game is scheduled to tip off at 1 pm and will be streamed on ESPN+.
For more information on the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team, you can visit EMUEagles.com.
