TU Rides Hot Start, Career-Night from Kirtley to Lopsided Win
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UPLAND, Ind. – Taylor hit 12 of its first 14 looks from the field, racing to a 24-5 lead over visiting Trinity Christian on Wednesday and got a career-high 17 points off the bench from Kayla Kirtley in a 77-59 victory.
A dominant first quarter was the difference for the Trojans, as TU ended the opening stanza with a 30-14 cushion after shooting 81.3 percent as a team and holding the Trolls (3-12) to just four field goals.
Taylor held a 13-point lead at the intermission and maintained its double-digit lead until TCC cut the margin to 46-39 with 5:19 to play in the third. The Trojans quickly pushed the spread back to 16, using an 11-2 counter ignited by a three-point play from Kirtley.
The lead dipped to nine in the final frame but the Purple and Gold had the answer yet again, this time netting eight-straight points to open a 17-point spread and rolling to the 18-point victory.
The win was TU’s 11th-straight double-digit margin of victory, while extending its best start in program history and the longest home and regular season win streaks in program history.
The Trojans had to overcome a rare poor shooting performance from the perimeter to come out on top after hitting a season-low four three-pointers in the game. Taylor instead attacked the basket and shot 23-of-39 from two-point range while beating the guests by 24 points in the paint.
TU also turned in a strong defensive effort, holding the Trolls to a 41.5-percent rate from the field and collecting 10 steals.
Kirtley finished her career-night with seven makes in 11 shots for a career-best 17 points, while Jamie Netzley, Abby Buchs, Becca Buchs and Merideth Deckard all scored 10 points. Madisyn Fischer turned in another all-around showing with a team-leading four assists to go with four rebounds, two steals and five points.
No. 9 Taylor (13-0, 3-0 CL) will head to Miami for games against Saint Thomas and Johnson and Wales on December 30 and 31.