FORT WORTH, Texas -- The John Brown women's basketball team jumped out to a 6-0 lead and, through a barrage of 3-pointers, built a double-digit lead as a trio of Golden Eagles set new career bests in an 84-73 win at Texas Wesleyan on Thursday evening inside the Sid Richardson Center.
Sophomore Jana Schammel had a career-high of 28 points, while freshman Baily Cameron had a career-high 25 points for the Golden Eagles.
Cameron hit 11-of-14 shots from the floor, including a 3-of-4 mark from the outside.
Schammel's career night of 28 points came in an even more efficient outing by knocking down 10-of-12 and 6-of-8 from downtown. Scoring only eight in the second half, Schammel notched 20 in the first half, finishing a perfect 7-7 from the field, 4-of-4 from the arc and 2-of-2 from the line.
In fact, the Golden Eagles (14-11, 7-6 SAC) blitzed the Rams (8-15, 3-10 SAC) for 13 triples from five different players and hit nearly 62 percent of its attempts behind the arc.
While TWU's Katelynn Threats took off for a game-high 31 points and Alycia Louallen scored 21, no other Rams scored more than seven points. Providing the difference was junior Kodee Powell, who notched her second-career double-double by adding 13 points and dishing out a career-best 11 assists.
This is the second time Powell has hit double-figure helper totals. The last time came in John Brown's overwhelming victory over Ecclesia (Ark.) on Dec. 11.
"I'm very proud of the way we played tonight," said head coach Jeff Soderquist. "Jana really got us going in the first half and then Baily really finished it off in the second."
Powell's 11 assists powered the conference's second-best assist squad in dishing out 26 assists on 30 field goals (86.7 percent). The guard's assist total fell one shy of a program record (12), set twice in the early 1980s.
Cameron's jumper in the paint started the scoring just 15 seconds into the game and Schammel took over quickly from there, helping the Golden Eagles build an early double-digit lead. After a pair at the line, Schammel converted four consecutive shots, including a pair of triples, to hand JBU a 14-4 advantage.
After Wesleyan crept back to within eight early in the second, senior Sofia Mendoza's mid-range jumper started a 7-0 run that featured a Powell layup and another Schammel trey for a 33-18 lead.
Up 12 with just over three minutes in the half remaining, JBU's three-point shooting caught fire when Powell's triple made way for back-to-back 3-pointers from Cameron and Schammel, allowing the visitors to coast into halftime on an 11-2 run.
The Rams pulled a little closer in the third, out-scoring John Brown 19-10, as the Golden Eagles were unable to buy a point over the final 5:03 of the third, a Mariah Knox triple.
The fourth quarter was an offensive affair that boasted a combined 55 points. Schammel and Cameron weren't interested in letting their career evenings go to waste, however, as Cameron started off the frame with a triple, sending the Golden Eagles on seven-consecutive possessions without a missed field goal, returning the lead back to 19, 75-56.
Cameron would go on to score 16 of her 25 points in the final period while Schammel hit eight points, including back-to-back triples, to maintain the 11-point win.
The Golden Eagles shot a season-best 62.5 percent from the field (30-of-48) while Wesleyan made do with a 56.9 percent effort (33-of-58), unable to stop the JBU offensive efficiency.
JBU finished its three-game Texas road swing on Saturday at Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) in Waxahachie. The Golden Eagles return to action Thursday against Mid-America Christian.
Sports on 02/14/2016