Kelsey Wyss broke Eastern’s all-time record for 3-pointers made in a career with a long range shot from the top of the arc with 13:06 left in Eastern’s 88-59 win over Austin Peay.

The 3-pointer was one of three Wyss hit in the game after needing two to break Lauren Dailey’s record from 2004, but Wyss’ first 3-pointer of the game was one that catapulted her team from a slumping first half.

The Panthers trailed Austin Peay, 18-14, with 7:35 left in the first half, having committed eight turnovers in the first eight minutes of the game and being held scoreless in the paint to that point.

Austin Peay sat in a zone defense for most of the game, which caused the Panthers to struggle in the first half.

Instead of forcing the ball to the basket, the Panthers settled for 3-point attempts. They were 6-of-18 from beyond the arc, in the first half.

Eastern coach Lee Buchanan said the game plan was not to take so many 3-pointers. The Panthers took 32 in the game and Buchanan said he does not think one of his teams has ever taken so many in a single game.

“I went in at halftime and quizzed (the team),” Buchanan said.

Austin Peay played a zone defense because they couldn’t guard the Panthers inside, Buchanan said. Even knowing that, the Panthers were settling for shots, Buchanan said.

Wyss, who has made her name on 3-pointers during her career, said the Panthers were not moving the ball and attacking the gaps as they should have.

“We were shooting threes we don’t normally take,” Wyss said. “Once we started putting pressure on their defense, we started taking care of the ball.”

Eastern senior forward Mariah King recorded the Panthers’ first points in the paint with 6:59 left in the first half, on a layup that gave Eastern a 19-18 lead.

But a turning point came on Wyss’ first 3-pointer with 4:12 left in the first half. The Panthers led 23-20 and moved the ball up the court after a missed 3-pointer by Austin Peay’s Shelby Olszewski and Eastern senior forward Sydney Mitchell missed a layup.

Eastern senior guard Ta’Kenya Nixon grabbed the offensive rebound and passed it back to Mitchell, whose shot got blocked.

The blocked shot fell into Eastern sophomore forward Sabina Oroszova’s hands. She took a jump shot, but missed.

Eastern red-shirt sophomore guard Katlyn Payne grabbed the Panthers’ third offensive rebound of the possession and passed the ball to Nixon at the top of the key.

Nixon shoveled the ball to Wyss, who stood at the top of the 3-point circle. Wyss took the shot, made it and Eastern led, 26-20.

With the remaining 4:12 left in the first half, the Panthers strung together a 12-2 run going into the locker room, which was a part of the Panthers’ 24-7 run in the last 7:47 of the half.

Eastern sophomore forward Sabina Oroszova said the Panthers had to figure out how to attack Austin Peay’s zone, even though they knew what to expect coming into the game.

“After halftime, we broke it,” Oroszova said.

The Panthers scored 20 of their 28 points in the paint in the second half.

Eastern added to its 13-point halftime lead by scoring 50 points in the second half, while shooting 56.3 percent.

Austin Peay struggled, shooting 35.3 percent in the second half, but it did not have much time to make the game closer.

Within the first five minutes of the second half, the Panthers extended its 13-point lead to a 21-point lead. The Panthers led by 34 points, 74-40 with 7:21 left in the game.

By the time Wyss made her record-breaking t3-pointer, with 13:10 left in the game, the Panthers already led 64-38.

But Tuesday’s game in Lantz Arena wasn’t only Wyss’ to celebrate. Oroszova set the program’s single-game record in blocks with seven.

Oroszova said she was just trying to exploit Austin Peay’s height disadvantage. She had five blocks at halftime.

Alex McNamee can be reached at 581-2812 or admcnamee@eiu.edu.