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INDIANAPOLIS – Katie Comello scored a career-high 28 points, Kerah Nelson scored 18 points and eclipsed 1,000 career points, and #Del’Niqua Bellamy# held the Summit League’s leading scorer and the third-leading scorer in the country to six points as IUPUI led from start to finish in a 72-48 win over Oral Roberts Saturday afternoon inside The Jungle.

The win snapped Oral Roberts four-game winning streak in the series and improved IUPUI’s overall and Summit League record to 7-11 and 2-4, respectively.

“I’m extremely proud of our ladies as it was an awesome performance on all levels,” said head coach Austin Parkinson. “We came out of the gates ready to play, which I thought was important, on the defensive end. At the end of the day, we played great defense the entire game and to hold a team like that to 48 points – that’s pretty impressive.”

Comello knocked down 8-of-13 shots, including 6-of-11 from three en route to her career-high 28 points, and scored 17 of those points in the second half.

“We have been kind of waiting for several players to make three-pointers at once – we have had an individual here and there have several big three’s – but Katie hit some clutch three’s in the second half that really kind of kept us with that cushion.”

While Comello led the team offensively, Nelson continued her steady scoring production pitching in 18 points, pushing her over 1,000 points for her career. Nelson becomes just the fifth player to reach that scoring milestone as a junior and is the 20th player to do so in program history.

“I couldn’t be happier for Kerah because she has been through a lot and to score her 1,000^th point this early in her career – with the rest of this season and her senior year left – is extremely, impressive. She is starting to become really consistent and when she plays that way, with that aggressiveness, it makes us a better team,” Parkinson said.

Nelson went on to add, “It means a lot. I had no idea I was that close to 1,000 points. Without my teammates I couldn’t have gotten there and I’d like to thank them first and I guess hard work pays off.”

Comello and Nelson were key in IUPUI’s victory, but Bellamy’s all-around performance was one of her best of the season. The Detroit-native scored eight points, grabbed a game- and career-high 11 rebounds, while holding the third-leading scorer in the country, Kevi Luper, to just six points on 2-of-12 shooting.

“The other thing I was really impressed about and what I thought was the key was Dee-Dee Bellamy. That’s the second 20-point scorer this year she has held under double figures,” Parkinson said about his sophomore guard. “To hold Luper to six points and to hold the girl from Lamar to two points – I mean there are not many better defensive players out there than her.”

IUPUI got off to the start it wanted to holding Oral Roberts to 0-of-6 shooting in the first 4:08, while using two baskets from
Nevena Markovic, a triple from Nelson, and a lay-up from Bellamy to take a 9-0 lead out of the gates.

Luper got the Golden Eagles on the board with a jumper at the 15:52 mark and Oral Roberts slowly chipped away at its deficit ultimately closing within four points, 16-12, with 8:19 to play.

Luper’s second and last made basket of the game came with 5:33 on the clock, keeping ORU within five points, but those would be its final points of the half.

In the final 4:33, four different players scored for IUPUI, capped off by a three-pointer by Comello at the buzzer, as an 8-0 Jaguars run to end the opening 20 minutes sent them into the locker room leading 31-16.

The 16 first-half points for Oral Roberts tied for its fewest in a half this season.

Despite hitting just two field goals in the first five minutes, IUPUI was aggressive offensively and got to the free throw line where it made its first eight attempts as its lead grew to 44-25 with 15 minutes to play.

The Golden Eagles were able to bring its deficit back to 15 points the 13-minute mark, but triples on consecutive possessions by Comello widened IUPUI’s lead to 20 points, 50-30, and the Jags never looked back.

Down the stretch, the Jaguars lead continued to grow and the Jags closed out a 72-48 win.

IUPUI dominated the glass, 47-34, and connected on 19-of-23 attempts from the charity stripe compared to just 6-of-11 for ORU.

Georgia Jones paced the Golden Eagles in scoring with 16 points.

The Jaguars are back in action on Monday, Jan. 16, when it welcomes Southern Utah to The Jungle for a 7 p.m. start. Scott McCauley will have the call on IUPUIJags.com beginning just before tip.