WARREN, Mich. – Marissa Thomas (Toledo, Ohio/Perrysburg) dropped in a career-high 27 points to lead Macomb Women's Basketball to an 84-62 non-conference home victory over the Lake Michigan College Red Hawks on Wednesday (Jan. 17). The 22-point win lifts the Monarchs to 9-5 overall.

The Monarchs will return to conference play at home Saturday (Jan. 20) against Mott Community College. Tip-off for the league battle is set for 1 p.m. at the Sports & Expo Center.

On Wednesday, the Monarchs were up 22-11 after one quarter of play and later led 47-25 at the break thanks to a near 50% shooting clip offensively and a stingy defense that forced a host of Red Hawk turnovers. The visiting Red Hawks started to climb back into the contest in the third quarter and went on to outscore the Monarchs in the frame, 21-14, but the Blue & White finished strong to earn the 22-point home win.

While five players reached double figures scoring in a balanced offensive effort, the story of the game was an aggressive full court defense by the Monarchs that forced 36 Red Hawk turnovers. The 36 turnovers led to a staggering 53-9 advantage in points off turnovers for the Monarchs.

Thomas paced the action with a career-best 27 points and did so on 9-of-15 shooting overall (3-of-3 3PM). The sophomore guard added four rebounds, three assists and two steals as part of a well-rounded night on the home hardwood.

Tamia Tounsel (Macomb, Mich./Dakota) and Sydney Garon (Shelby Twp., Mich./Henry Ford II) followed with 12 points each with Tounsel grabbing eight rebounds and Garon knocking down four triples on the night. Kamryn Richards (Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./Grosse Pointe South) dished out seven assists to go along with 11 points and three rebounds, while Hannah Roberts (Roseville, Mich./L'Anse Creuse) recorded her first double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Roberts added three assists and three steals to round out one of her better performances in a Macomb uniform.