MIAMI, Fla. – Austin Peay (7-2) shot 48 percent from the field and drained 10 three-point field goals, powering its way to an 80-63 win over Binghamton (9-2) in the opening round of the Florida International University (FIU) Women's Basketball Holiday Hoops Showdown on Thursday afternoon at the Ocean Bank Convention Center. With the loss, the Bearcats will face Grambling State in the consolation game on Friday at noon.
The Bearcats had three players reach double figures in scoring, led by sophomore forward
Annie Ramil, who finished with 14 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard
Kai Moon added 13 points to go along with five rebounds and three steals while junior forward
Olivia Ramil finished with 10 points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks.
Austin Peay came into the game ranked No. 14 in the nation with 9.6 three-point field goals per game. The Governors hit nine three pointers alone in the first half to take a 47-27 lead at the break.
Binghamton pulled to within 63-50 on a jumper by sophomore guard
Hayley Moore with 6:36 left in regulation. From there, however, Austin Peay went on a 10-4 run over a four-minute stretch to ice the game.
Tahanee Bennell paced a balanced Austin Peay attack with 15 points. She was 5-for-10 from the field and hit three shots from beyond the three-point arc. Booker D'Shara and Ella Sawyer each added 10 points.
Austin Peay held a 45-34 advantage in rebounding as well as a 32-20 edge in points in the paint.
Freshman guard Denai Bowan scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds for the Bearcats. Fellow freshman guard
Zahra Barnes dished out a team-high and career-best five assists.
Moon now has 1,096 points for her career and moves into 13th place all time in Binghamton program history. Against Austin Peay, she surpassed Laura Sario (1,088 points from 2004-08) and Alyssa James (1,091 points from 2015-18).
In addition, Moon was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. She now has 332 made free throws for her career and moves into seventh place all time in program history. Against the Governors, she surpassed Andrea Holmes, who made 327 free throws from 2008-12.
