MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A hot start and a strong close proved to be the difference for Henderson State on Wednesday evening as the Reddies defeated Christian Brothers 71-60 in the final game of 2019.

Pink Jones led the way for Henderson with a game-high 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor. Her sister Blu Jones also turned in a strong performance, scoring 13 points off of the bench in just 20 minutes, while Karrington Whaley added 11 and seven boards.

The Reddies (7-3, 2-2) were hitting on all cylinders to begin the game on the road and used 3-pointers from Hailey Estes and Lani Snowden to fuel an 18-4 run to open the contest. HSU out-scored the Lady Bucs 22-11 in the first quarter and controlled play for the entire first half before taking a 38-28 lead into the break. Henderson shot 56.3% in the opening quarter and 50% overall in the first 20 minutes.

HSU was able to keep Christian Brothers at arms length in the third, but the Lady Bucs continued to hang around and finally made their move to open the fourth, when they capped an 8-0 run with a 3-pointer which cut the deficit down to 53-50 with 7:48 left to play. 

Facing a threat for the first time all night, the Reddies responded with the run that decided the game, as they scored the next 11 points — seven of which came from Pink Jones — to regain complete control and seize a 64-50 lead at the 4:44 mark. CBU never got within eight points again as the HSU coasted to the final buzzer and a 71-60 win.

Henderson out-rebounded Christian Brothers 41-32 on the night and got 24 points from its bench compared to just two for the Lady Bucs. The win is the Reddies' second non-conference road victory of the year over a fellow NCAA DII opponent.

The Reddies will return to action in the new year on Jan. 2, 2020 when they host Oklahoma Baptist at 5:30 p.m. in the Duke Wells Center.