Tampa Secures Fifth Straight Road Victory

ST. LEO, Fla. - The University of Tampa women's basketball team locked down the Saint Leo offense in their fifth straight road victory. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP: 
Final Score: Tampa 63, Saint Leo 48
Records: University of Tampa Spartans (19-6, 13-4 SSC), Saint Leo University Lions (10-16, 5-13 SSC)
Location: Marion Bowman Activities Center || St. Leo, Fla. 
All-Time Series: The Spartans dominate the series 82-16; UT has won the last eight games, including 12 of the last 13. 

HOW IT HAPPENED:
1st Quarter | Saint Leo started the game with an 8-2 lead, as the Lions connected two three-pointers and five total points from Casey Wortley. However, the Spartans rallied quickly with a 17-2 scoring stretch of their own. Dori Nagy led the team with nine points in the first quarter and Emily Eshoo added two three-pointers in the first 10 minutes of play. Nagy went to the line three times and converted on all three attempts. UT grabbed eight rebounds compared to Saint Leo's four boards. Each team committed three turnovers apiece, but Tampa scored eight points off turnovers. The Spartans defense held Saint Leo scoreless for over four minutes and led 21-13 at the end of the quarter.

2nd Quarter | The Spartans were streaky in the quarter, going on two separate 6-0 scoring runs. Staja Tyghter scored 12 points in the second quarter, and tied Nagy for the team-lead, 14 points, in the half. Tyghter shot a perfect 6-for-6 in the first half while Nagy grabbed a game-high six rebounds in the 17 minutes of action. Tampa dominated in the low-post, out-rebounding the Lions 20-10 and out-scoring SLU in the paint, 22-4. Saint Leo shot 3-for-13 from the field in the second quarter, and finished the half converting on one of their last seven shots. UT shot 5-for-7 from the free throw line in the second quarter, as the Lions committed five fouls in each quarter. The Spartans led 44-24 at the end of the first half. 

3rd Quarter | The two teams went cold in the second half as the teams combined to shoot 5-for-18 in the third quarter. Nagy registered her eighth double-double of the season during the quarter, entering the fourth quarter with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The Spartans logged four turnovers while Saint Leo committed three turnovers. Tampa led 51-34 over SLU, entering the final quarter of play.

4th Quarter | Nagy netted the first two baskets of the quarter for UT, but Saint Leo went on 6-0 run with four trips to the foul line. The Spartans went four minutes without a basket until Julia McClure drained a three-pointer as the shot clock expired with four minutes to go. In the final four minutes, the two teams combined for three made field goals.

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Tyghter tied a season-high with 20 points on the evening, shooting 8-for-11 from the field. The senior from Orlando scored 20 points on Jan. 26 at Barry University.
• Tyghter has scored in double-figures in 23 of 25 games this season. 
• Nagy tied a season-high with six offensive rebounds. The senior from Hungary has scored 20-plus in three of her last four games. 
• Eshoo has connected from long-range in 21 of 25 games this season.

BEYOND THE BOX:

• The Spartans held their opponent to 50 points or less for the 12th time this season.

UP NEXT: The University of Tampa will host Nova Southeastern on Saturday, Feb. 23 as tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

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