The Eastern women’s basketball team (4-3) picked up a 66-56 win against Lipscomb Dec. 1, raising their record above .500 for the third time this season. 

The win was the Panthers’ third in their last four games, all coming on the road. They are averaging 72.75 points per game and surrendering just 52 during that span. 

Against Lipscomb, sophomore Jordan Hughes led Eastern with 24 points, matching her season high set in the Panthers’ first game of the season against Lindenwood. Hughes shot 7-10 from the field including 4-6 from three-point range and was 6-6 from the free throw line. 

Abby Wahl was the Panthers’ second-leading scorer with 16 points. She was coming off a game against Wisconsin in which she scored a career-high 23 points in a 63-55 loss for the Panthers.

Junior guard Taylor Steele scored nine points and gathered a career-high 13 rebounds to lead the team. 

A key difference between the Wisconsin game and the one against Lipscomb for Eastern was free throws. 

In Madison, the Panthers attempted only eight free throws and made seven. But Lipscomb sent Eastern to the line for 28 free throw attempts, of which the Panthers made 21. This helped the Panthers secure the win as they shot only 40 percent from the field. 

Eastern was more efficient inside, going 11-21 on layups and outscoring Lipscomb 24-16 in the paint. The Panthers also outscored Lipscomb 22-10 off turnovers and the Eastern bench scored 26 points to Lipscomb’s 12, but Hughes was responsible for 24 of those points. 

Another factor in the Panthers’ win was the turnover ratio. Eastern turned the ball over 16 times compared to Lipscomb’s 22 turnovers. Additionally, the Bisons could not shoot well on possessions that did not end in turnovers, shooting just 17-53 from the field and 5-24 from three-point range. 

Low shooting outputs have been commonplace among Eastern’s opponents. The Panther defense has held opponents to 37 percent from the field. Conversely, the Panther offense is shooting 41.8 percent from the field. 

The Panthers return home Dec. 7 for their final game before winter break, playing Omaha at 1 p.m. in Lantz Arena. 

This will be the first time these two teams play in almost exactly four years. On Dec. 6, 2015, the Panthers fell to the Mavericks 76-67 in Omaha. 

Adam Tumino can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].