BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Samford's Emily London hit a three-pointer with two seconds to go in the game to lift the Bulldog women's basketball team to a 44-41 Southern Conference win over UNC Greensboro Monday night at the Pete Hanna Center.

"This was a heck of an effort and a heck of a way to win a basketball game," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "Emily made a big shot, Monica (Maxwell) made a big shot earlier to tie the game and Megan (Wilderotter) came up with a big offensive rebound. Our whole team got some stops down the stretch to give us a chance to win the game."

The win gave Morris his 100th career win as a head coach, all at Samford.

"This is a credit to all of our players," Morris said. "If you stay in coaching long enough, hopefully you will win some games, but all of the credit goes to our players."

Samford was led in scoring by London and Monica Maxwell with 12 points each. London also had a team-high eight rebounds in the game. Savannah Hill and Megan Wilderotter added eight points each for the Bulldogs.

For UNC Greensboro, Monique Floyd led the way with eight points. Agne Girstautaite led all rebounders with 11 for the game.

Samford jumped out to an early 8-4 lead with 16:01 to go in the first half after a three-pointer by Maxwell. UNC Greensboro fought back to take the lead at 13-11 with 10:49 left in the first half after a layup by Amanda Leigh.

The Spartans pushed their lead out to seven at 21-14 with 5:31 to go in the half. Samford cut the lead to three at 21-18 with 3:15 to go, and UNC Greensboro took a 24-20 lead into halftime.

The Spartans pushed their lead out to eight at 28-20 with 18:06 to go in the game, but Samford scored the next five points to cut the lead to three at 28-25 with 15:42 to play after a three-pointer by London.

With Samford trailing, 32-26, the Bulldogs went on an 8-0 run to take a 34-32 lead with 9:04 to play after a pair of free throws by Wilderotter. UNCG scored the next five points in a row to take the lead again at 37-34 with 5:24 to go in the game.

With Samford trailing, 41-38, Maxwell hit a three-pointer with 1:14 to play to tie the score at 41-41. After a Samford missed three-pointer with 26 seconds to go, Wilderotter came up with a key offensive rebound to set the stage for London's game-winning shot.

Samford improves to 8-3 overall and 3-1 in Southern Conference play with the win. UNC Greensboro drops to 6-7 overall and 3-1 in league play.

Samford will return to action on Saturday, Jan. 3, when the Bulldogs play at College of Charleston. The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. Central start from Charleston, S.C. UNCG visits Chattanooga Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. in a SoCon tilt.

Furman 78, Charleston Southern 68

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Lee Stephens poured in a game high 28 points, including 24 in the second half, to propel Furman to a 78-68 come-from-behind win over Charleston Southern in women’s basketball action Monday afternoon at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Stephens, a junior guard from Cincinnati, Ohio, finished the game connecting on 9-of-17 field goals and 9-of-10 from the free throw line while also claiming a team high eight rebounds.   The 28 points marked the second highest tally of her career, trailing only the 36 points she registered in Furman’s 82-68 season opening victory over Clemson.

With Furman trailing 40-34, Stephens connected on a jump shot just 10 seconds into the second half to spark an 11-2 run that saw the Paladins take a 45-42 lead following a three-point play by Kali Holtfreter just three minutes into second period.

Stephens then delivered seven points with a pair of field goals and a trio of free throws in a 9-2 Paladin outburst over the next four minutes to help Furman stretch its lead to 54-44 with 13:05 remaining.

A steal and layup by Shana Booker 15 seconds later completed the Paladins’ second 11-2 run of the half and stretched the advantage to 56-44.

Charleston Southern answered with a pair of baskets to cut Furman’s margin to eight points, but Stephens responded with four straight free throws midway through the half to again make it a 12-point game.

The Paladins’ lead grew to as many as 15 points following a Stephens layup with 4:18 remaining.

The victory evened Furman’s season record at 6-6 while Charleston Southern, which got 23 points from Pam Tolbert, slips to 5-6 on the campaign.

Melissa Liebschwager, who converted 4-of-5 3-point attempts, followed in the scoring column for Furman with 16 points and four assists.  Booker tacked on nine points and six boards for the Paladins.

Furman shot 42.4 percent from the field (25x59), including an impressive 53.6 percent (15x28) in the second half, and converted 21-of-29 free throws.  The Paladins claimed a 42-38 rebounding advantage.

Furman plays its final non-conference game of the 2008-09 campaign on Wednesday when it entertains Winston-Salem State in a 5:00 p.m. game on Carolina First Court at Timmons Arena.

Georgia Southern 61, Florida International 49

MIAMI, Fla. - The Georgia Southern women’s basketball team advanced to the final game of the FIU Sun & Fun Classic Monday evening (Dec. 29) at the U.S. Century Bank Arena after defeating host school, Florida International. The Eagles trailed after the first half, but outscored FIU 32-19 in the second half to capture the win, 61-49. Senior Ashley Rivens (Charlotte, N.C.) scored 11 points in the second half, 18 overall, to lead the Eagles in the win. Georgia Southern improved to 8-4, while Florida International dropped to 3-9.

The Lady Eagles gained a double digit lead, 14-3, early in the first half after Jamie Navarro (Naples, Fl.) nailed a three-pointer with 14:31 on the clock. FIU did not hit double digits in scoring until Asia Wilson hit a lay-up just after the second media timeout.

With 24.7 seconds left in the first half, Michelle Gonzalez scored a clutch field goal for FIU, giving the Golden Panthers their first lead of the game, 30-29. Georgia Southern did not get another shot off and headed to the locker room trailing by one point.

Ashley Melson (Newnan, Ga.) led the Eagles at half, chipping in 10 points and cleared away four rebounds. Monika Bosilj scored 14 of FIU’s 30 points, eight from the charity stripe, in the first half and pulled down four boards for the Golden Panthers. FIU went 9-10 from the free throw line in the first half; Georgia Southern went 2-4.

Rivens put the Eagles back on top early in the second half with a lay-up, but it wouldn’t last long. Bosilj visited the charity stripe four times by the first media timeout and the Golden Panthers led 35-33 at 15:57. Georgia Southern tied the game at 39 apiece off three unanswered field goals, but the Golden Panthers answered back and led 47-45 at the third media timeout.

The Lady Eagles erupted following that timeout and a three-pointer from Samantha Williams (Kingsport, Tenn.) with 6:30 left put the Eagles back on top, 48-47. Williams’ three-pointer sparked a 7-0 run by the Eagles, who led 55-47 with 3:33 left in the game. A lay-up from Gonzalez ended a seven minute scoring drought for the Golden Panthers and it would be their last of the game.

“It was a great win on the road,” said head coach Rusty Cram. “We played good basketball and kept our cool down the stretch.”

Rivens led the Eagles with 18 points, followed closely by Melson, who chipped in 16. Geiger pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Bosilj led the Golden Panthers with 22 points, Elisa Carey was second with nine points; Carey also pulled down the most boards with seven. Gonzalez was held to a mere six points for FIU after posting in double figures the past five games.

Georgia Southern shot 52 percent on the game, 63.6 percent in the second half, hitting 14 of 22 shots. FIU shot 34.8 percent from the floor, 31.8 percent in the second half. The Golden Panthers visited the charity stripe 18 times in the game to the Eagles’ eight.

Georgia Southern will meet Marist on Tuesday (Dec. 30) in the final game. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.