PORT HURON – Macomb Women's Basketball earned its fourth consecutive win on Saturday (Jan. 4), outlasting the Cougars of Kalamazoo Valley Community College in a low scoring affair, 45-40. The four-game winning streak vaults the Monarchs' overall record above .500 for the first time since they were 1-0 to open the campaign.
 
Up 14-9 after one quarter of play and owning a narrow 28-25 lead at the half, the Monarchs were able to hold off a Cougars rally and earn the two-possession win. A defensive-minded contest throughout, both teams clamped down in the fourth quarter as the Monarchs outscored the Cougars by a stingy 7-4 margin to hold on for their seventh victory of the season.
 
Key Stat: The Monarchs forced 34 Cougar turnovers to earn a 23-18 edge in points off turnovers. The five-point differential equaled the margin of victory at game's end.
 
A'Liyah Forris (Detroit, Mich./Cass Tech) accounted for nearly half of the Monarchs' points with a game-high 21 thanks to three triples and a 10-of-13 effort from the charity stripe. After a big defensive stop, Forris went to the line and knocked down both free throws to seal the game and finish with 20 or more points for the second time this season.
 
Asiyah Jihad (Farmington, Mich./North Farmington) followed with 10 points and seven rebounds, while Sydney Garon (Shelby Twp., Mich./Henry Ford II) checked in with eight points and a team-high eight rebounds. Ava Prasnjak (St. Clair Shores, Mich./Lakeview) accounted for four points and three steals and Zion Harris (Clinton Twp., Mich./Lakeview) rounded out the scoring with two points.
 
Carissa Hankins (Farmington Hills, Mich./Farmington) led a cast of seven Monarchs with two or more steals with four.