Despite committing a season-high 31 turnovers, the Eagles took down the Florida International Panthers in overtime, 81-74.

“The turnovers we make, you could make a blooper reel out of,” said head coach Anita Howard. “It’s not anything that they did that we weren’t expecting, it was just stuff that we were doing that we didn’t expect.”

The 31 turnovers committed by the Eagles was their highest total since they turned it over 32 times against North Carolina Central last season.

Although the offense struggled to hold on to the ball, they also managed to shoot a season high 49% from the field and 31% from beyond the three point line.

Junior guard Mya Burns led the strong shooting performance with 20 points, including going 7-10 from the free throw line. Forward Eden Johnson also had a strong performance, racking up 13 points and a team-leading 12 rebounds.

“I’m confident, because my teammates are confident in me,” said Burns. “Because of their trust in me, it kind of builds my confidence too and I got to back it up.”

Defensively, it was another strong performance from Howard’s unit. The team’s “Swarmification” mindset resulted in 20 turnovers that turned into 17 points for the Eagles.

“Defense travels,” said Howard. “One of the things we wanted to do defensively is disrupt every shot attempt they took. Defensively, I’m really pleased in our efforts that we showed tonight.”

Following the win, the Eagles now sit at 3-0 on the season and are in the midst of their best start since the 2016-17 season.

GS will have a quick turnaround as they travel to California for a two-game road trip. The Eagles will take on San Diego State at 2 p.m. on Saturday, before facing San Diego Christian at 11 p.m. on Monday. The team’s second game will be broadcast on the GSAC Sports Network.