On Wednesday, Jan. 8, the Oakland Golden Grizzlies women’s basketball team dropped a tough match against the IU Indy Jaguars at the OU Credit Union O’Rena, 79-73, in their second conference loss of the season.
Maddy Skorupski had a standout performance for the Golden Grizzlies, leading all scorers with 25 points, six rebounds and four assists. Alongside Skorupski was Macy Smith, who poured in 23 points and tallied four assists of her own.
Defensively, Lianna Baxter disrupted the Jaguars all game, finishing with a season-high four blocks and four steals.
For IU Indy, Katie Davidson spearheaded the attack, scoring a team-high 23 points and seven boards. Davidson was one of four Jaguars to score in double figures, with Nevaeh Foster contributing 17 points in a balanced showing.
The Golden Grizzlies came out firing in the first quarter, as crisp ball movement and consistent trips to the free-throw line helped Oakland build an early lead. Defensively, Oakland stood tall, holding IU Indy to just five points in the first eight minutes of play.
Oakland ended the first by scoring six consecutive points in the final minute. The efficient quarter was best summed up by Madison Royal-Davis’ and-one to close out the quarter, which put Oakland ahead 21-9.
In the second quarter, IU Indy started to find consistent offense and began to chip away at Oakland’s lead. By the media timeout, the Jaguars trailed the Golden Grizzlies by just six points as Foster and Alexa Hocevar started to heat up.
Following the media timeout, both teams traded baskets the rest of the way. However, as the buzzer sounded to signal halftime, Smith knocked down a jump shot to give Oakland a 42-35 lead heading into the break.
At the start of the second half, Smith and Skorupski had back-to-back buckets for the Golden Grizzlies. However, a trip to the line for IU Indy’s Faith Stinson kickstarted a 12-0 run for the Jaguars that lasted nearly three minutes, giving IU Indy its first lead of the game.
Royal-Davis responded to the run with a layup, but it wasn’t enough as the Jaguars continued to build momentum. By the end of the quarter, a once seven-point Oakland lead had flipped to a seven-point Jaguar lead.
With IU Indy now in the driver’s seat, Oakland hung around with the Jaguars at the beginning of the fourth quarter. A couple of Skorupski mid-range jumpers and a layup from Baxter kept the game within reach.
However, as the fourth started to wind down, the Jaguars began to pull further away from the Golden Grizzlies. A layup from Hocevar bolstered the IU Indy lead to 74-62, the Jaguars’ largest lead of the night.
In the waning moments of the fourth, Oakland narrowed the Jaguar’s lead after IU Indy missed some crucial free throws, but the clock wasn’t on Oakland’s side, as the Jaguars held on for the 79-73 victory.
Overall, the Jaguars’ ability to clean up their defense in the second half was a game-changer. IU Indy committed far fewer shooting fouls while forcing the Golden Grizzlies to take more contested shots, disrupting their offensive flow.
Additionally, IU Indy played more physically on offense in the second half. The Jaguars’ physicality led to more chances from the free-throw line, putting Baxter into foul trouble, which led to Oakland’s defensive anchor missing some crucial minutes down the stretch.
Up next, the Golden Grizzlies will look to bounce back as they travel to Wisconsin to play the Milwaukee Panthers on Thursday, Jan. 16, and the Green Bay Phoenix on Saturday, Jan. 18.