Liberty University
21-7,15-2ASUN
Eastern Kentucky
17-13,10-7ASUN
Berkman Celebrates Birthday with Big Game in 90-77 Win Over EKU
2/25/2023 10:42:34 PM | Women's Basketball
Head Coach Carey Green Press Conference
Dee Brown and Mya Berkman Press Conference
Liberty’s Mya Berkman celebrated her 23rd birthday in a big way, Saturday evening at Liberty Arena. She posted 20 points and a career-high and Liberty Arena-record 18 rebounds as the Lady Flames raced past Eastern Kentucky, 90-77, in their final home game of the regular season.
The Lady Flames, who set an arena single-game record with their season-high 90 points, improve to 21-7 overall and 15-2 in the ASUN with their 13th consecutive win. Berkman’s presence inside led the way to considerable season highs for offensive rebounds (27) and second-chance points (36).
The Colonels drop to 17-13 overall and 10-7 in ASUN action despite a Liberty Arena single-game record 28 points for the conference’s leading scorer, Antwainette Walker.
Box Score Highlights
Other Liberty Individuals: Dee Brown – 17 points, 7 rebounds, 3-3 3FG; Emma Hess – 15 points; Jordan Bailey – 9 points; Pien Steenbergen – 9 points, 4 assists; Kennedi Williams – 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals; Bella Smuda – 6 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks; Jordan Hodges – 6 assists.
Eastern Kentucky Individuals: Walker – 28 points, 13 rebounds, 4 steals, 9-10 FT; Danielle Rainey – 17 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks; Marissa Mackins – 10 points; Alice Recanati – 8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists.
Key Team Stats: Liberty got 20 more shot attempts than EKU (80-60) in an up-tempo game, hitting 34 of them for 42.5 percent. Both teams knocked down eight triples on the night. The Colonels shot 79.2 percent (19-of-24) at the foul line compared with 70 percent (14-of-20) for the Lady Flames. Both teams committed 18 turnovers, but Liberty had 21 assists to Eastern Kentucky’s nine. The Lady Flames scored nearly half their points inside the paint (42 of 90).
Turning Point
Eastern Kentucky made runs at the Lady Flames for much of the night and trailed by only eight 67-59 with 2:26 left in the third quarter after Mackins hit two free throws.
Liberty finally distanced itself from the Colonels with a 14-3 run spanning the end of the third and start of the fourth quarters.
Berkman scored 10 straight Liberty points to close out the surge, which enabled the Lady Flames’ lead to balloon to 19 (81-62) with just 8:00 left.
Game Summary
First Quarter
- Liberty hit four triples during the first quarter, including three during a 14-5 surge to end the quarter. As a result, the Lady Flames were able to turn a 13-13 deadlock into a 27-18 advantage.
- Dee Brown went 3-of-3 from behind the arc during a nine-point first period.
Second Quarter
- Emma Hess scored seven points during an 11-0 Liberty run, including a corner triple at the 6:06 mark which put the Lady Flames in front by 19 (42-23).
- EKU responded with four three-pointers during a 19-5 surge, getting as close as 47-42 on two Danielle Rainey free throws 46 seconds before halftime.
- The Lady Flames pushed the lead back to double digits (52-42) at the intermission, aided by 17 offensive rebounds and 22 second-chance points during the first 20 minutes.
Third Quarter
- Walker scored nine points during the third period, but Berkman answered with a six-point, seven-rebound stanza. Liberty was able to take a 15-point lead (75-60) into the final period.
Fourth Quarter
- The Lady Flames’ lead reached 24 (90-66) on Brown’s fast break layup with 3:42 to play.
- EKU then closed the game on an 11-0 run to make the final score much closer.
Notes and Nuggets
- Berkman’s 18 rebounds broke her own Liberty Arena record of 17 set earlier this season against Central Arkansas (Jan. 5). Eleven of her boards came at the offensive end, marking the most by a Lady Flame since Keyen Green had 11 offensive caroms against Jacksonville on Jan. 11, 2020.
- Berkman’s double-double was her 10th of the season and the 17th of her career, while her 20-point game was her fourth of the season and the seventh of her career.
- Berkman passed Sarah Wilkerson for eighth place on Liberty’s all-time scoring list on Saturday, finishing the night with 1,335 career points. She also leapfrogged Katelyn Adams, Bridgette Rettstatt and Elena Kisseleva on Liberty’s career rebounding chart, ending the night sixth all-time with 877 caroms.
- Brown’s three triples set a season high, and she is now averaging 15.7 ppg in three career matchups with EKU.
- Hess’s 15 points were her most since scoring a career-high 28 at Lipscomb on Jan. 28, Bailey’s nine points were her most since an 11-point outing at North Florida on Jan. 12 and Steenbergen’s nine tallies were her most since she matched her career high of 11 in the Jan. 21 win over FGCU.
- Hodges’s six assists set a new career high.
- Smuda’s two rejections give her 40 for the season and 103 for her career, tying Catherine Kearney for seventh in program history.
- Prior to Saturday, the arena record for points in a game was 89 during Liberty’s 2021-22 season-opening win over Belmont Abbey (Nov. 9, 2021).
- The Lady Flames’ 13-game winning streak is their longest since a 14-game streak spanning Jan. 24-March 8, 2015.
- The Lady Flames have won 12 in a row at Liberty Arena, improving to 40-3 all-time at the facility.
- Liberty went 8-0 in February, improving to 158-24 during the month under Carey Green.
Up Next
The Lady Flames will close out the regular season with a Wednesday visit to Bellarmine (9-21, 5-12 ASUN). Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. inside Freedom Hall for the teams’ second meeting in seven days. Liberty topped the Knights by a 77-50 count at Liberty Arena on Thursday, improving to 5-0 in the all-time head-to-head series.
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