BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- The Old Dominion women's basketball team fell to WKU, 79-73, on Saturday afternoon at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
"We were in the game, but we just couldn't get over the hump," said head coach Karen Barefoot. "Really, what it came down to was the fouls. We couldn't stay in front of [Kendall] Noble. We didn't have an answer for her and that's what she does well. She got it from the free throw line and they had to earn it from the free throw line and nothing else."
Annika Holopainen led Old Dominion (15-12, 10-6 C-USA) with a career-high 18 points, while Jennie Simms added 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Ashley Jackson added 10 points and eight boards and Destinee Young fell just short of a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds.
Despite 56 percent shooting from the Lady Monarchs in the first half, WKU (22-6, 14-2 C-USA) carried an eight-point lead into halftime. The Lady Toppers led 25-18 at the end of the first quarter and then Micah Jones, who went 6-of-8 from beyond the arc, banked in a long three at the halftime buzzer to give WKU a 41-33 lead heading into the break.
ODU outrebounded WKU, 20-12, in the opening half and scored 15 second-chance points. However, nine Lady Monarch turnovers led to 14 WKU points.
In the second half, WKU extended its lead to as much as 12 in the third and carried a 61-52 lead into the fourth quarter. ODU was able to cut the WKU lead to six on multiple occasions throughout the fourth quarter, but could never make it a one-score game, as the Lady Toppers held on for the victory on their senior night.
Overall, ODU outrebounded WKU, 40-24, and the Lady Monarchs also held a 34-9 advantage in bench points. However, ODU committed 18 turnovers, leading to 24 WKU points. Jones led WKU with 21 points, while Kendall Noble added 18 points, six rebounds and five assists.
"I'm proud of my team," said Barefoot. "We went after it. We gave our heart and we gave our soul."
UP NEXT
The Lady Monarchs return to Norfolk next weekend to close out the regular season with UTEP and UTSA. ODU hosts UTEP on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET on Pride Night and UTSA on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET on Senior Night.