(INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Feb. 1)—The McKendree University women's basketball combined a balanced offensive attack and an impressive defensive effort into a 63-53 victory Thursday evening at the University of Indianapolis.
 
Four different Bearcats scored in double figures while the visitors held the host Greyhounds to just 27.1 percent shooting for the contest as McKendree ended a two-game winless streak. McKendree improves to 9-9 on the season and is now 5-6 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play. The Bearcats will head to Romeoville, Ill., for a Saturday afternoon contest at Lewis University. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
 
Senior forward Shauniera Wilson (Springfield, Ill./Southeast) came off the bench to lead McKendree with 16 points while sharing team-high honors with eight rebounds. Jordan Heberg added 13 points and six rebounds, while junior forward Jordan Morton and freshman guard Sydney Diekhoff each posted 10 points. Morton matched Wilson with eight rebounds as Diekhoff dished out a game-high five rebounds for the Bearcats.
 
With the teams deadlocked at 26-26 at halftime, McKendree took the lead for good by opening the third quarter on an 11-2 run to grab a 37-28 lead with 6:31 left in the period. The Bearcats shot 53.3 percent in the quarter and survived a late run by UIndy in the closing minutes to take a 44-41 lead into the final period. McKendree then used a lay-up from Wilson and a jumper from Diekhoff to force a Greyhounds' timeout with 8:04 remaining as the Bearcats' lead grew to 48-41.
 
McKendree was able to preserve its lead despite the efforts of the Greyhounds' Martha Burse, who scored all 12 points in the fourth quarter for Indianapolis. Burse made 3-of-7 shots from the field over the last 10 minutes, while the Bearcats held the rest of the UIndy lineup 0-for-7 in that same span. Burse, who entered the evening as the fifth-leading scorer in NCAA Division II, finished the night with a game-high 31 points.
 
Burse made a pair of free throws with 1:40 remaining to help UIndy pull within 59-53. Morton then helped McKendree clinch the victory by making all four of her free throw attempts over the last 54 seconds of action.
 
For the game, McKendree limited UIndy to 16-of-59 shooting from the field for 27.1 percent. The Bearcats' defensive effort was especially sharp in the second half as the Greyhounds managed to connect on just 8-of-35 from the floor (22.9 percent). McKendree also outrebounded Indianapolis 44-36 and commanded a 30-10 edge in points in the paint for the contest. The Bearcats' bench also outscored the Greyhounds' reserves by a 30-10 margin.
 
McKendree led for the balance of the first half before Indianapolis (7-15, 4-8 GLVC) put together a 10-4 run to grab a 21-19 advantage with 2:25 left until the intermission. The Bearcats battled back and used a three-pointer from Diekhoff with 55 seconds on the clock to regain a 26-23 lead. Burse answered for the Greyhounds with a three-pointer of her own on UIndy's final possession of the half to send the teams into the locker room even at 26-26.