Western Carolina 75, Chattanooga 66
Cullowhee, N.C. ? Western Carolina put four players in double figures, led by a career-high tying 16 points from junior Chevon Keith as the Lady Catamounts completed its first-ever seasonal sweep of the Chattanooga Lady Mocs, 75-66, Saturday afternoon in the Ramsey Center. Western overcame being held scoreless from the field the final 6:11 of the second half to capture its 10th-straight victory and assume sole possession of first place in the Southern Conference standings.
WCU’s win, which snapped Chattanooga’s seven-game winning streak, also marks the first time that UTC was swept by a SoCon team in the regular season since Furman did it in the 2001-02 season. Western’s 10-consecutive wins are the most in a row since 1982-83, its first year in the Southern Conference.
Fans can watch the tape-delayed broadcast on Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast (CSS) on Sunday afternoon at 6:30 pm (check local listings).
Western (18-7, 12-2 SoCon) tallied its final field goal on a runner by Keith at the 6:39 mark, and scored its final two points on a pair of free throws by junior Monique Dawson with 6:11 remaining in the contest. Despite the scoreless drought, which saw the Lady Cats shoot 0-for-10, WCU stiffened on the defensive end, limiting Chattanooga to just 1-for-9 from the field and only allowed seven points from the free throw line.
Even with the poor shooting late in the game, the Lady Catamounts still managed to shoot 42.3-percent (30-of-71) from the field, with a 7-for-16 (43.8%) showing from beyond the 3-point arc. Chattanooga answered with a 40.3-percent (27-of-67) field goal percentage for the afternoon, but struggled from long range at just 3-for-25 (12.0%). The three made treys tied a season-low for UTC, with the other occasion also coming against Western earlier this season.
In addition to her team-high 16 points, Keith added six rebounds, five steals and three assists. Her classmate, Ashley Pellom, added a dozen points including doubling her made 3-pointers on the season with two in the contest (four on the year). Pellom added with five boards, three steals and a pair of assists, while a third junior, Monique Dawson, added 11 points with a career-high five assists. Sophomore Lauren Powell chipped in 10 points, including a trey, with junior Jessika Johnson and senior Lynsie Lamitie both just missing double figures with eight apiece.
Sophomore Kendra Eaton was tied with Keith for WCU’s high rebounder with six, adding a career-best three blocked shots in the win.
Western fell behind quickly, 5-0, but managed to answer right back with a trey from Lamitie and a Powell lay-up to knot the game for the first of seven times in the opening 20 minutes. Tied at 15, UTC used a 9-0 spurt to take its largest lead of the game at nine, 24-15, at the 9:47 mark of the first half. The Lady Catamounts chipped away at the deficit with a 12-to-2 run, and eventually forced three additional tie scores before grabbing the lead for what would prove to be for good on a 3-pointer by Pellom with 3:29 remaining before intermission.
WCU managed to build its lead to as many as six over the final three and a half minutes, taking a five-point, 40-35, advantage into the locker room.
Chattanooga (18-7, 11-3 SoCon) cut Western’s lead to three, 46-43, just over two minutes into the second half, but a 13-to-6 spurt by the Lady Catamounts stretched out to 14, 63-49, midway through the final stanza. UTC trimmed the deficit back down to nine a minute and a half later, but Western kept the pressure on, building its advantage to a game-high 16 points on two occasions, and then prevented the Lady Mocs from making a comeback on the defensive end despite struggling on offense.
Chattanooga junior Alex Anderson was the only Lady Moc player in double-figures, finishing with 29 points, surpassing 1,000-point plateau for her career. She added 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season, matching her season-high with four blocked shots. Kristen Spann had nine points in the loss, adding six boards, while Brooke Hand, with a pair of first half 3-pointers, had eight points.
Chattanooga outscored Western Carolina in the paint 44-32, but the Lady Catamounts converted 17 UTC miscues into 18 points. The Lady Mocs out rebounded WCU 47-38 and converted 16 offensive rebounds into 16 points.
The Lady Catamounts will again be the first half of a WCU basketball double-header this Monday (Feb. 12) night. Western will host Georgia Southern at 5:00 pm, with the men entertaining Chattanooga in the night cap approximately 30 minutes after the women’s game. Both games will be broadcast by the Catamount Sports Network and can be heard in Western North Carolina on WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5 in Cullowhee or on-line at www.WWCUFM.com.
UNC Greensboro 81, Appalachian State 62
GREENSBORO, NC - The UNC Greensboro women’s basketball team had four players in doubles-figures as the Spartans defeated Appalachian State, 81-62 in women’s basketball action at Fleming Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. The win gives UNCG their 10th win in Southern Conference action and extends their current win streak to three games.
Junior Kristen Boone lead UNCG (17-8, 10-4), finishing with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor. She also dished out six assists and was 4-of-5 from the charity stripe. Irene Otamiri was UNCG’s next leading scorer, tallying a season-high 16 points. Otamiri also had a career-high six steals on the afternoon. Brittany Frazier, who had her first double-double of the season, pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds.
The Spartans also had three players perfect from the free throw line. Frazier was 6-of-6 from the line, while KaLeah Latham and Kemena Brooks were 4-of-4 from the stripe.
“We were a little sluggish in the beginning of the game,” head coach Lynne Agee said. ?We did a good job of settling down and picking up the pressure in the second half. I was very pleased with the way Brittany Frazier played this afternoon. She played a physical game and really turned in a great performance for us.”
Appalachian State (11-14, 5-9) was led by Whitney Tossie who had 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and Jamie Bennett who pulled down 12 rebounds.
Appalachian State got out to the early lead out of the gates, starting the game on a 6-2 run in the games first two minutes.
The Mountaineers got back-to-back three-pointers from Maria Grimes and were able to extend their lead with a bucket by GiGi Thomas.
Boone got the Spartans offense going and was able to cut the Appalachian State lead to 8-6 with a bucket in the paint at the 16:03 mark, but the Mountaineers got a bucket from Thomas on the next possession and pushed the lead back to four points before UNCG tied the game up at 10-10 with two unanswered buckets from Boone and Otamiri.
The Spartans took their first lead of the game on the next possession and went on a quick 6-0 run to push the lead to 16-10 at the 13:22 mark but Appalachian State went on a small run of their own and was able to tie the game at 16-16 with just over 12 minutes remaining in the half.
The teams traded buckets over the next several minutes but the Spartans were able to jump out to a 42-29 lead with just under three minutes remaining in the half but Appalachian State went on an 11-2 run to close the half sending the Spartans into the lockeroom with a 44-39 lead.
UNCG scored the first five points of the second half to make it 49-39 with 18:23 remaining and then used their defense to create offense the rest of the afternoon and were able to go on several runs to put the game out of reach.
UNCG’s largest lead of the game was 20 points, which came in the games final minute. Appalachian State tried to dig themselves out of the hole but couldn’t find enough offense, as the Spartans cruised to their third consecutive victory.
The Spartans finished the game shooting 43.5 percent on 27-of-62 shooting from the floor and pulled down 43 rebounds. UNCG had a decided advantage in the paint, scoring 30 points in the paint to Appalachian State?s 18. The Spartans also got help from their bench who contributed 24 points.
The Spartans return to the hardwood on Monday when they take on College of Charleston. Tip is set for 5 pm and is the first game of a doubleheader with the UNCG men.
Davidson 75, Georgia Southern 52
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- Davidson used a 23-10 run to start the second half on its way to a 75-52 victory over Georgia Southern as the Wildcat women's basketball team set a new single-season school record for wins with 19 on Saturday afternoon in Southern Conference action. The previous best mark was
18 set by the 1998-99 squad and matched twice during head coach Annette Watts' six-year tenure. Davidson, who had dropped three of its past four contests, got back on the winning track by improving to 19-6 overall and
10-4 in league play. GSU fell to 9-16 overall and 4-10 in SoCon action.
Before the game, seniors Brynn Kelly (Spokane, Wash.), Jessica Mitchell (Wilkesboro, N.C.) and Tia Washington (Charlotte, N.C.) were honored for Senior Day. The three combined for 27 of the Wildcats' 75 points, led by Washington's 16. The Wildcats' starting point guard, Washington tied her career-high with an 8-for-8 performance from the charity stripe, while chipping in with three assists, three boards and two steals.
Mitchell nailed two of the 'Cats' six three-pointers on her way to eight points and dished out a game-high six assists. She also pocketed half of Davidson's 10 steals on the afternoon. The Wildcats welcomed back Kelly, who had missed the last nine games due to a stress fracture in her foot. The senior post player played 14 minutes and contributed three points, four rebounds and a steal.
Pacing the Wildcats to their third win of 21 or more points was redshirt junior Katie Hamilton with a game-high 18 points, 11 of them coming in the first half. She finished 5-of-9 from the field, including two three-balls, and hauled in eight rebounds off the glass.
Davidson played catch up most of the first half as Georgia Southern led by five, 15-10, through the first nine minutes of the half. Four times the Wildcats came back to tie the score, only to see the Eagles regain the lead on their next possession.
Then on the fifth tie of the half, 21-21, Davidson got a Hamilton jumper on its next turn down the floor and outscored the Eagles 11-4 in the final five minutes of the stanza for a 32-25 lead at intermission.
Though it was Senior Day, it was the underclassman sophomore Mercedes Robinson (Mansfield, Texas) who put on a show of her own to start the second half. She started the Wildcats' second period with a layup in the lane and went on to net 10 of the Davidson's next 17 points to push a seven-point Wildcat halftime lead out to 15 (49-34) with 11:41 remaining in the game.
Robinson also chipped in with a team-best nine boards for the game and has hauled in 17 in her past two contests.
Davidson went on to push its lead into the 20's on a three-ball from Mitchell at the 8:50 mark and would lead by as many as 26 points the rest of the way in picking up its ninth home game of the season, 75-52. The Wildcats also ran their win streak against the Eagles to eight straight, by sweeping the two-game regular-season series.
Carolyn Whitney, who had 14 in her first meeting against the Wildcats, matched that number, while the Eagles' leading scorer Tiffany Brown was the other player to hit for double figures, closing with 10 points. The Eagles were held to 32.8 percent shooting, marking the seventh time Davidson has held its opponent to under 35 percent shooting in a game.
Chequilla Jessie paced the Eagles on the boards, pulling down nine in helping GSU to a 41-39 rebounding margin.
Davidson finishes out the home portion of its schedule with a matchup against Elon on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. Davidson will be looking to match the school record for most home wins at Belk Arena in a season, which is 10.
Furman 51, Wofford 47
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Visiting Furman shot 45.5 percent from the field in the second half following a sluggish first half by both teams and the Lady Paladins held on for a 51-47 victory at Wofford Saturday evening during Southern Conference women's basketball action inside the Benjamin Johnson Arena in Spartanburg, S.C.
Neither team got on track during the opening 20 minutes as the Terriers' 25.0 percent from the field topped Furman's 23.1 percent effort. Both squads shot better following the break but the Lady Paladins' 16-of-20 outing overall from the foul line off-setted a 12-of-21 performance by Wofford and it helped carry the visitors to the victory.
Sophomore Liz Miller tallied the Terriers' first six points and her made layup on a steal and ensuing free throw following a foul at 11:30 of the first half knotted the score at 6-6, the game's last tie.
Furman (9-16, 4-10 SoCon) then used a 7-0 spurt, including a 3-pointer by Kali Holtfreter, to take a 13-6 lead before junior Kelsi Koenig snapped it with a layup on an under-the-basket pass from freshman Kathlyn Varno at 7:31. Back-to-back jumpers from Chrissy Phelps and Jessica Lange pushed the Lady Paladin advantage to nine, 17-8, as 5:06 remained in the stanza.
Rookies Kelly Dwyer, who earned her first collegiate start, and Natalie Gramblin would hit consecutive shots to bring Wofford (11-13, 5-9 SoCon) back within five, 17-12 but Katie Johnson added four more points for Furman and Phelps added another field goal to give the Lady Paladins a 22-14 halftime lead.
Sarah Baker nailed a triple and Holtfreter scored on a layup to open the second session's scoring and give Furman its largest edge of the game at 13, 27-14, with 18:28 to play. The Terriers, however, did not quit and a 3-pointer by senior Mary Jo Yee and a bucket by sophomore Laura Depko sliced the deficit to six, 31-25, as part of a 9-4 Wofford run.
The Lady Paladins would respond with a 13-7 streak of their own, capped by a layup from Melissa Liebschwager at 7:25, to swell the margin back to a dozen at 44-32. Again, Wofford did not allow Furman to continue to dominate. Miller tossed in a pair of free throws and then knocked down a trey at 4:38 to bring the Terriers within four, 46-42, on a 10-2 run.
Another free throw by Miller and a pair by Koenig sliced the deficit to two, 49-47, with :43 seconds to play before Adrienne Gilmore iced the contest with two made shots from the charity stripe with :19 seconds remaining.
Phelps finished as the game's leading scorer with 17 points, including 6-of-7 from the foul line, while dishing out four assists and grabbing five steals. Holtfreter added seven points and she tied Baker for game-high honors with seven rebounds.
Miller scored a team-high 15 points and Koenig contributed 11. Miller also swiped seven steals, matching her own Division I single-game school record which she set during back-to-back games earlier this season against Southern Virginia (Nov. 13) and Charleston Southern (Nov. 15). Correll finished with a Wofford-best six rebounds.
Senior Jennifer Weurding had one blocked shot, raising her conference and school record to 231, and giving her at least one in all 14 SoCon games this season.
The Terriers will return to action at 7 p.m. Monday as they welcome Appalachian State to the Benjamin Johnson Arena. The Lady Paladins will play at home at 5 p.m. Monday against Chattanooga.
Elon 64, College of Charleston 58
ELON, N.C. Tiffany Davis poured in 15 points and Rachel Hester pumped in
14 as Elon overcame College of Charleston for a 64-58 Southern Conference women?s basketball triumph Saturday night at Alumni Gym.
The seesaw battle featured 11 lead changes and four ties. The Cougars (10-15 overall, 5-9 SoCon) seized an early 7-2 lead on a pair of free throws by Jill Furstenburg with 17:07 to go in the opening period.
Trailing 9-4 with 16:13 to play in the frame, the Phoenix (10-15, 4-10) reeled off seven consecutive points to claim its first advantage at 11-9 on a put-back by Nikko King with 13:25 remaining before the intermission.
With Elon leading 14-12 at the 11:38 mark of the first half, College of Charleston scored six straight points to fashion an 18-14 edge on a put-back by Sarah Moye with 7:41 left in the period.
The Phoenix stormed back, scoring the next five points to reclaim the lead at 19-18 on an old fashion three-point play by Urysla Cotton with 3:47 to play in first half.
The Cougars reeled off the next five points to go ahead 23-19 on a jumper by Erika Smith with 1:24 to go before the break. A free throw and a field goal by Elon?s Amber Wall cut the Cougars? advantage to 23-22 for halftime.
Trailing 27-24 with 17:24 remaining in the contest, the Phoenix went on a
22-9 run to take control at 46-36 on an old fashion three-point play by Nikko King with 9:35 to play.
College of Charleston used a 10-2 spurt to pull within 48-46 on a pair of charity shots by Smith with 4:25 left. Elon responded with an 8-2 run to extend its edge to 56-48 on a freebie by Davis at the 2:30 mark.
The Cougars answered with a 10-6 spurt to inch within 62-58 on a three-pointer by Nikki Williams with 11 seconds to go, but could draw no closer. A pair of free throws by Shashonna Moore with eight ticks left determined the final score.
King pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds and Hester equaled a career best with three steals while the Phoenix claimed a victory after trailing at halftime for the first time this season. Elon improved to 4-1 when scoring at least 60 points.
The Phoenix also ended a four-game losing streak and split the season series with College of Charleston. The Cougars lost for the fifth consecutive time.
They have now lost their last seven conference contests.
The Cougars out-rebounded the Phoenix 39-38 and committed 14 turnovers to Elon?s 15. The Phoenix outscored College of Charleston 28-16 in the paint, 11-10 off turnovers, 10-8 off second chances and 10-4 off fast breaks. The Elon bench outscored the Cougars? bench by a 35-10 margin.
Jade Hughes (12 points, game-high five assists, three steals), Williams (12 points), Furstenburg (11 points, seven rebounds, four assists) and Smith (11 points, six rebounds) led College of Charleston.
Elon fired 39.6 percent (21 of 53) from the field 30.8 percent (4 of 13) from three-point land and 78.3 percent (18 of 23) from the stripe. The Cougars shot 32.8 percent (21 of 64) from the floor 41.7 percent (5 of 12) from behind the arch and 84.6 percent (11 of 13) from the line.
College of Charleston will visit UNC Greensboro at 5 p.m. Monday. Elon visits Davidson at 7 p.m. Tuesday.