Miami, Fla. — Florida International University used pressure defense to build a 16-point halftime lead, and Youngstown State's women's basketball team dropped its opening game of the FIU Holiday Classic 78-61 on Friday morning.
The Panthers forced the Penguins into 11 turnovers in the first 13 minutes as they built a 30-15 lead, and the teams played within two points of each other over the final 27 minutes.
Erica King led Youngstown State with 15 points, and five of her teammates scored either eight or nine points. Rhema Collins had game highs of 28 points, 12 rebounds and four steals to lead FIU, which won its fifth straight game.
Youngstown State dropped to 7-4 overall, while FIU improved to 6-3. The Penguins will play again on Saturday at FIU's tournament at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center against UMass at 1:30 p.m.
YSU's Sarah Baker scored the first four points of the game, and the Penguins led 9-5 after Danielle Cameron's 3-pointer just under three minutes into the contest. FIU scored the next eight points to take a 13-9 lead, and King's 3-pointer at the 3:36 mark brought the Penguins within 15-14. That was YSU's only field goal of the quarter after Cameron's 3.
Collins finished with 13 points in the first quarter as the Panthers built a 23-15 lead, which they extended to 30-15 after a Parris Atkins layup with 7:26 left in the second quarter.
King made two free throws at the 6:54 mark for YSU's first points of the quarter, and FIU upped its lead to 18 points three times before Sophia Gregory and King scored on back-to-back possessions to make the score 40-26 at halftime.
YSU had just one turnover in the final seven minutes of the first half, but the Penguins went cold shooting and finished 4-for-15 from the field in the second quarter.
Youngstown State got as close as 11 with 4:22 left in the third quarter after Gregory and Paulina Hernandez had back-to-back three-point plays. YSU continued to show improvement against FIU's pressure but couldn't convert on opportunities down the stretch to shave more off the deficit.
The Panthers led 58-45 at the end of the third, and YSU was as close as 12 at 64-52 with 5:59 left after a Baker bucket. FIU outscored the Penguins 12-4 over the next four minutes to extend its lead to 76-56.
Youngstown State shot 34.9% from the field and went 5-for-21 from 3-point range, and the Penguins finished with 20 turnovers. FIU shot 47.7% and made nine more field goals than the Penguins. The Panthers held a 52-24 scoring advantage in the paint.
Saturday's game against the Minutewomen will tip at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and 1390 WNIO.
