Box Score WACO, Texas – Behind Trudy Armstead's 26 points and a second half surge from the field, the Northwestern State women's basketball team shot past Savannah State 77-56 Saturday night in the final game of the Athletes in Action Classic.
 
NSU (3-2) was 50-percent from both the field (16-32) and behind the arc (4-8) to take a tie game at halftime and outscore the Tigers (3-2) 47-26 in the second.
 
"We felt like we weren't attacking enough offensively in the first half, but we felt much better after the second 20 minutes with us attacking the rim and the paint," said second year co-head coach Brooke Stoehr.  "I think we were just too passive to start."
 
NSU was 9-of-30 from the field in the first and only had one 3-pointer in 11 attempts.  In the second half alone, the Lady Demons had 24 points in the paint after only getting 10 in the first.
 
"We shot the ball much better in the second half and I think that's just the mentality we just have to take," she said.
 
Armstead was only four shy of her career-high in points, and one shy of her season-high from the first game of the season versus Southern Arkansas.
 
Four Lady Demons, including Armstead, finished in double-figure scoring.  After Armstead's 26, Keisha Lee had 16, Janelle Perez 11, and Chelsea Rogers had 10.
 
"I felt like Keisha did a great job of attacking in the second half and that's who she is and who we need her to be," said Stoehr. "I think she did a great job of coming out in the second half and trying to get the ball in the painted area.
 
"Trudy kept us going," she said. "She was active on the glass; she got to the free throw line and made some tough shots.  I really felt like she came out and battled."
 
Rogers had a double-double on the night with 12 rebounds, which tied Kourtney Pennywell for the team-lead in boards.
 
"They're just active," said Stoehr. "Pennywell is going to be active and tough.  Chelsea does the same thing and just has a knack of going to get the basketball."
 
Perez was very close to her first double-double, and set a career-high in assist with nine.
 
The Lady Demons forced Savannah State into 12 turnovers with four steals while only surrendering eight miscues.
 
Ezinne Kalu finished as the Tigers' leading scorer with 14 points ahead of Jasmine Norman who had 11.  Kenyata Hendrix was the team's leader with eight rebounds.
 
The Lady Demons will return to the floor on Dec. 2 when they host Jackson State at 7 o'clock in Prather Coliseum.