EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Austin Peay State University women's basketball team was unable to overcome a slow start and dropped its penultimate Ohio Valley Conference contest to SIUE, 71-61, at the Vadalabene Center, Thursday.

First-quarter turnovers cost Austin Peay (18-9, 11-6 OVC), with the Governors committing nine of their 17 turnovers in the first 10 minutes of the contest. SIUE (11-17, 7-10 OVC) was able to capitalize on the Govs' early miscues, scoring 13 of their 14 points off turnovers in the opening period.

Despite the early giveaways, Austin Peay used a 61.5-percent shooting performance from the floor in the first period to stay in the game and trailed just 25-17 after 10 minutes.

In the second period, the Govs were struck by an untimely cold spell and went just 3-for-12 from the field. With 3:34 left in the first half, Yamia Johnson knocked down a pair of free throws for two of her team-high 20 points to bring Austin Peay back within seven points, 33-26. But SIUE closed the second quarter on a 9-0 run and led, 42-26, at the half.

With 7:14 left in the third period, the Cougars built their biggest lead of the contest, 49-30, when Mikayla Kinnard hit a free throw for one of her team-high 17 points. Austin Peay finally found its footing on the offensive end and was able to trim the deficit to just 15 points, 53-38, on a D'Shara Booker layup with 4:15 left in the period.

However, the Cougars were able to match the Governors bucket for bucket the rest of the way in the third quarter and Austin Peay trailed, 61-46, after Johnson buried a three-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer.

The Govs opened the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run that saw Johnson score two points on both sides of a Karle Pace triple and cut the deficit to just eight, 61-53, at the 5:42 mark. With 1:30 left in the contest, the Governors got the SIUE lead down to just seven, 66-59, when Liz Gibbs knocked down a baseline jumper.

But that was as close as Austin Peay would get, with SIUE closing the game on a 5-2 run to knock off the Governors.

The Difference 

A slow start. The Governors fell behind by eight points in the first quarter and trailed by 16 points at halftime. Austin Peay outscored SIUE by six points in the second half, but it was too little, too late.

Notably 

• Austin Peay lost to SIUE for the first time since 2019 and saw a five-game winning streak in the series come to an end.  
• Austin Peay falls to 10-15 in the all-time series with SIUE.
• The Governors are now 4-8 all-time against the Cougars in Edwardsville.
• The Govs outscored SIUE, 16-14, in points off turnovers and lost for just the third time this season when they score more points off turnovers.
• Austin Peay outscored the Cougars, 36-34, in the paint and lost for just the second time this season when it wins the battle in the paint.
• Austin Peay turned the ball over 17 times and forced 18 SIUE turnovers, marking just the second time this season the Govs have lost when winning the turnover battle.
• Yamia Johnson scored 20 points to lead the Govs in scoring for the team-best 12th time this season.
• Johnson's 20-point outing was her fifth 20-plus point game of the season and matched Karle Pace for the most by a Gov this season.
• Johnson's 20-point performance is her best game since scoring 22 points against Belmont, Jan. 27.
• Liz Gibbs scored 10 points; her second game in double-figures this season and best performance since scoring a season-high 12 points at Southeast Missouri, Jan. 1.
• After missing a pair of games, D'Shara Booker posted her seventh double-digit scoring performance of the season with 10 points.
• Booker also led the Govs on the glass for the sixth time this season with eight boards.
• Ella Sawyer dished out five assists to lead the Governors in assists for the team-leading 13th time this season.
• Sawyer has now recorded at least three assists in 18 of 27 games this season.
• Nina De Leon Negron posted four assists, she now has a team-high 92 assists this season and has dished out at least three assists in 20 of 27 games this season.

Up Next 

Austin Peay plays its regular-season finale when it travels to Eastern Illinois for a 1 p.m., Saturday contest at Lantz Arena in Charleston, Illinois. The Governors are then back in action at the OVC Women's Basketball Championship, March 2-5, at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. For news and updates on everything Governors women's basketball, follow along on Twitter and Instagram (@GovsWBB) or check back at LetsGoPeay.com.