PIPPA PASSES, Ky. -- In his first season as head coach, DeWayne Burroughs battled through injuries and a youthful roster to weather a four-win storm.
Now, Burroughs has helped the (RV) Shawnee State women's basketball program storm through its opposition in the River States Conference -- all the way to a NAIA National Tournament bid.
With the Bears needing only a win Saturday afternoon in its regular season finale against the Alice Lloyd (Ky.) Eagles' women's basketball program to seal homecourt advantage in the River States Conference Tournament and lock up the automatic bid to the NAIA Women's Basketball National Tournament that comes with it, Shawnee State accomplished both tasks Saturday.
The Bears jumped out to a 7-0 lead over the first 3:51 before giving up a basket, and led 27-9 after the opening quarter before cruising to an 82-61 win over Alice Lloyd to officially claim the program's first NAIA National Tournament berth since the 2020-21 season with its 21-point victory over the Eagles in the River States Conference regular season finale for both teams at the Perry Campus Center in Pippa Passes, Ky.
Game Summary
From the opening tip, Shawnee State's (24-4, 15-1 River States Conference) pressure defense and tempo proved to overwhelm Alice Lloyd (10-17, 5-11 River States Conference), as the Bears shot 29-of-63 (46 percent) from the field while holding the Eagles to 21-of-60 (35 percent) from the floor. Shawnee State posted a plus-11 rebounding advantage (45-34), forced 19 Alice Lloyd turnovers, and nabbed a positive assist-to-turnover margin as as a team (14 assists to 12 turnovers).
As a result of the above numbers, Shawnee State never trailed in the contest, and the Bears led by as much as 29 points (59-31) in the third quarter. All 13 Shawnee State players on the roster who made the trip to Pippa Passes scored in Saturday's triumph.
Gloster dominates from start to finish
Throughout Saturday afternoon's play, Cianna Gloster simply played at a different level than anybody else on the floor.
Over the opening 10 minutes of action, the 6-0 senior forward from Flint, Mich. was, in a simple word, relentless -- as Gloster's intense ball pressure at the top of Shawnee State's fullcourt pressure in the opening quarter and her hustle at every end of the 'Coach J Court' floor at Alice Lloyd rendered it difficult for the Eagles to even advance the basketball a quarter of the way up the floor at times.
Within the game's first 4:40 of action, Gloster already had 10 points, four rebounds and two steals -- and finished off her scoring tear by scoring in transition off of Jonilyah Chambers assists on three separate occasions -- ultimately leading to a ridiculous 16-point, five-rebound, two-steal statline after the opening quarter of action on 6-of-8 shooting from the field.
Gloster ultimately finished with a tremendous 28-point, 11-rebound, two-steal statline on 10-of-17 shooting for the contest to claim her 40th career double-double in her 58th career game at Shawnee State. She's now averaging 15.3 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.9 steals while shooting 54.8 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range.
Gregory adds in smooth game
Playing at a great pace once again, graduate student guard Sanaya Gregory set the tempo for Shawnee State's success -- especially throughout the middle portion of the contest.
Gregory, who finished with 10 points to join Gloster in double-figures, added in all of her points and assists in the second and third quarters of action to provide stability up top while directing traffic for SSU as a lead guard.
Gregory is now averaging 7.9 points, 2.6 assists and 1.6 steals through 28 games -- and is canning her free throw attempts at a terrific rate to boot, hitting her charity stripe opportunities at an 88.3 percent clip.
Howard posts career effort
Getting burn throughout the second quarter, freshman guard Molly Howard -- who played her high school basketball straight up Kentucky State Route 7 at Elliott County High School in Sandy Hook, Ky., an 80-mile drive from the Alice Lloyd campus -- enjoyed her best performance as a Shawnee State Bear.
Howard, who played in eight out of a possible 10 minutes in the second quarter of action, scored all nine of her points in the frame while going 4-of-5 from the field on a bevy of smooth shots in rhythm and within the flow of the offense. Howard scored all nine of her points in a span of 4:59 in the second quarter (6:40 to 1:41), hitting a three-pointer, making two mid-range jump shots, finding fellow freshman Laken Williams for a bucket and scoring on a putback -- making the final regular season game of her freshman year a memorable one.
Defense leads Shawnee State to River States Conference Championship, NAIA National Tournament opportunity
Nationally, Shawnee State's defense has been at an elite level throughout much of the 2024-25 season. The Bears finished the 2024-25 regular season ninth in the NAIA in defensive points per game (55), 14th in steals per game (12.6) and 15th in rebounding margin (plus-9.4). Opposing offenses have been held to 36.4 percent shooting by Shawnee State, as well.
As a result, Shawnee State has won 11 consecutive games and 17 out of their last 18 -- en route to hosting the River States Conference Tournament throughout as well as obtaining the NAIA National Tournament's automatic bid.
Additional
Emily Maynard, Miyoshi Ellis, Jariah Steele and Laken Williams all finished with six points apiece -- with Maynard adding in three assists, two rebounds and two steals -- while Jonilyah Chambers added in three points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal to boot.
Lauren Hawthorne (seven rebounds, four steals, two points), Addison Edmondson (three rebounds, two points), Lexi Deaver (two points), Jada Johnson (four rebounds, one point) and Jaden Tucker (one point) all reached the scoring column for Shawnee State in Saturday's win.
The official matchups to begin the River States Conference Tournament, which will be Wednesday, Feb. 26, will be posted to www.ssubears.com as soon as they are announced by RSC officials.
