RUSTON, La. | The Grambling State University women's basketball team could not ecover from a cold-shooting day from the floor as Louisiana Tech picked up a 64-53 in the 2017-18 season opener on Friday morning at the Thomas Assembly Center.
 
"Defense is our calling card... Their (Louisiana Tech) strong suit is the inside and our strong suit is on the outside," Grambling State head coach Freddie Murray said. "We're going to get better as the season goes on."
 
Grambling State (0-1) shot 26.7 percent (16-of-60) from the floor and 25 percent (6-of-24) from behind the 3-point line.
 
Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Preseason Player of the Year, Shakyla Hll, and Jazmin Boyd each finished with 12 points to pace the Lady Tigers' offense. Hill, who was 4-of-9 from the floor and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe, grabbed a team-high seven rebounds, dished out a team-high six assists and registered four steals.
 
Alexus Malone led Louisiana Tech (1-0) with 17 points, nine rebounds, two steals and one assist. Kierra Anthony tallied 13 points, on 4-of-11 shooting and two 3-pointers, while Reauna Clever added 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
 
Turning Point
Grambling State trailed 31-29, at the half, but opened the second half on a 5-1 run, capped by a Hill layup to take a 34-32 advantage with 7:19 remaining in the third quarter.
 
The Lady Techsters quickly answered and took advantage of Grambling State's cold shooting to use a 9-3 run to grab a 41-35 lead at the end of the third quarter.
 
The Lady Tigers were 1-of-14 from the floor in the quarter, but shot 80 percent (4-of-5) from the free-throw line.
 
Grambling State cut a double-digit Louisiana Tech lead to 51-45 after two free throws by Boyd with 5:07 remaining, but that would be as close as the Lady Tigers would get.
 
Inside The Numbers
* Grambling State shot 16-of-60 (26.7 percent) from the field and 15-of-21 (71.4 percent) from the free-throw line.
* Louisiana Tech was 21-of-53 (39.6 percent) shooting and 17-of-24 (70.8 percent) from the charity stripe.
* Grambling State scored 16 points in the paint, 15 off turnovers and four second-chance points.
* Louisiana Tech finished with 26 points in the paint, 22 off turnovers and nine second-chance points.
* The Lady Tigers held a 21-13 advantage in bench points.
* There were 48 fouls called during the game.
* There were three ties and eight lead changes.
 
News & Notes
* Separated by five miles, the last meeting between the schools was on Nov. 19, 2016.
* Louisiana Tech leads the series, 5-0.
* Grambling State returns nearly everyone off last year's 19-win team.
 
Up Next
The Lady Tigers step back into action on Monday, Nov. 13 against the Louisiana-Monroe. Tip-off in the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center is set for 6 p.m.
 
Follow Grambling State Athletics
For complete coverage of Grambling State athletics, please follow the Tigers on social media at @GSU_Tigers (Twitter), /gramblingstateathletics (Facebook), @gramblingathetics01 (Instagram) or visit the official home of Grambling State Athletics at gsutigers.com.