Box Score
The Youngstown State women's basketball team outscored UIC by 10 in the first period and held even over the final 30 minutes in an 88-78 victory on Friday afternoon at Beeghly Center.
The Penguins have now won four straight games, the last three of which have come against UIC, to improve their record to 4-3. UIC dropped to 2-8 overall and 1-6 in Horizon League play.
Freshman Nneka Obiazor led five Penguins in double figures with 19 points as YSU had contributions throughout the lineup. Seven of the eight players who attempted a field goal shot at least 50 percent, and YSU shot a season-best 54.7 overall.
McKenah Peters made four 3-pointers in the first half to score 12 of her 17 points in the first 20 minutes, and the senior finished with five of the Penguins' nine 3s. Mary Dunn had 14 points, and Malia Magestro matched her in a career-high effort in the scoring column. Chelsea Olson had 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists.
Jaida McCloud scored 20 points, and Keona Schenck had 19 to lead UIC. The Flames shot 46.8 percent, but they were 7-for-24 from 3-point range and went 13-for-26 from the free-throw line.
The Penguins went 5-for-8 from 3-point range in the first period, and two treys by Peters in the first 1:15 of the game gave YSU a quick 6-0 lead. UIC's only lead of the game came at 10-9 with 5:33 remaining, and a Maddie Schires 3-pointer 40 seconds later sparked an 11-point run that was part of a 16-5 spurt to end the period.
Mady Aulbach's three-point play at the 2:11 mark put the Penguins up 20-10 to cap the 11-0 run, and YSU led 25-15 heading into the second. The Flames got as close as 31-30 as YSU scored six points in the first seven minutes of the period, but the Penguins finished the half with a flurry. Obiazor scored on an offensive rebound on the next possession, and YSU went on to close the half on a 13-2 run. Magestro had five points in that stretch, and Peters banked in a long 3 at the buzzer to put YSU ahead 44-32.
The Penguins extended their lead to 51-34 at the 7:57 mark of the third, but UIC turned up the pressure defensively and got as close as four at 58-54 with 1:57 remaining. YSU finished the quarter strong again, and a 7-2 run to end the period gave it a 65-56 edge.
Youngstown State's lead grew to 71-57 following a layup by Magestro at the 7:02 mark of the fourth, and the final margin of 10 the smallest gap in score over the final 7:46. YSU's largest advantage came at 79-61 with 4:35 left on an Obiazor bucket.
Youngstown State held a 39-25 rebounding advantage, and it had 11 second-chance points. That helped offset the Penguins' 22 turnovers, which led to 25 UIC points.
YSU will try to earn its fifth straight victory in another matchup with the Flames on Saturday at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN and ESPN+.
