MONTICELLO, Ark. –  Ke'Vonshaye Stackhouse and Kylie Ladd both turned in career highs in points, with Stackhouse scoring 26 and Ladd scoring 22, leading a cast of four Arkansas Tech players to reach double figures in points as the Golden Suns (12-2, 8-2 Great American Conference) rolled to an 84-66 win over the Arkansas-Monticello Cotton Blossoms (5-9, 1-8) on Thursday night at Steelman Fieldhouse.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The two teams traded baskets over the opening minutes of the contest, with neither team taking more than a two-point advantage over the first six minutes of the contest.
• Jayana Sanders hit a 3-pointer at the 4:11 mark to push Tech's lead out to four (15-11).
• The Golden Suns claimed a seven-point (22-15) advantage with a minute to play on a Kylie Ladd 3-pointer, but UAM was able to narrow the deficit to five (24-19) after one quarter of play.
• UAM scored the first four points of the second quarter, but Tech pushed its lead into double figures (35-25) with 4:53 remaining in the second quarter after a Lyrik Williams free-throw.
• Jacie Higgins' layup in transition pushed the Tech lead to 12 (37-25) and forced UAM to take a timeout.
• Tech pushed its lead to as many as 18 points (46-28) with 2:19 to play in the half before the Blossoms narrowed the gap to 11 (46-35) at the half.
• The Golden Suns took control in the third quarter and extended the lead to 20 points (57-37) after a Ladd 3-pointer with 5:22 remaining, and carried a 24-point advantage (74-50) into the fourth quarter.
• UAM narrowed its deficit slightly in the fourth quarter, and Tech took an 18-point (84-66) win.

NOTABLES

• Joining Stackhouse and Ladd in double figures were Jacie Higgins (14 points) and Jayana Sanders (10 points).
• Stackhouse and Cheyenne North both tied for the team lead with seven rebounds.
• Tech outshot UAM 46.2 to 34.9 percent, and connected on 15 3-pointers to UAM's three.
• UAM made the most of its trips to the charity stripe, connecting on 19 of 22 attempts.
• Tech held a 25-13 advantage in points off turnovers, while UAM held a 42-37 rebounding advantage, a 14-6 advantage in second-chance baskets, and a 26-20 advantage in bench points.
• Ladd and North had nine assists apiece.

NEXT UP

• The Golden Suns return to Tucker Coliseum on Saturday, Jan. 20, hosting Ouachita Baptist in a 1 p.m. contest.