Davidson 61, UNC Greensboro 55 (OT)
GREENSBORO, NC ? UNC Greensboro’s Monique Floyd hit a pair of free throws with 26.6 seconds left in regulation to give the Spartans a 53-52 lead, but Davidson’s Mandy Halbersleben hit a free throw of her own with 5.1 seconds left to force overtime and the Wildcats pulled away in the extra frame to down UNCG on Monday, 61-55.
Agne Girstautaite scored a career-high 12 points to go with eight rebounds for UNCG, while preseason Southern Conference player of the year Mercedes Robinson had 17 points and 17 rebounds to pace the Wildcats.
The Spartans (6-9, 3-3 Southern Conference) came tantalizingly close to knocking off the SoCon leaders, as Floyd’s free throws snapped a nearly four-minute scoring drought by both teams. Lakiah Hyson’s 3-pointer with 4:31 to play gave UNCG a 51-50 lead, but Julia Paquette’s layup put the Wildcats (7-8, 6-0 SoCon) back on top with 4:12 to play.
Neither team could get a shot to fall for the rest of regulation, but Floyd was fouled away from the basket with just a shade under 27 seconds to play in the second half and knocked down both ends her one-and-one to put the Spartans back on top. The celebration was short-lived, however, as Halbersleben was fouled going up for a shot on the other end and went to the free throw line with the game in the balance.
Halbersleben missed the front end to keep the Spartans’ upset hopes alive, but she knocked down the second to tie the score. UNCG got the ball back with five seconds to make something happen, but couldn’t get off a shot as time expired.
The Wildcats got the scoring started in overtime, as Alex Thompson drained a 3 with 3:51 to play that put Davidson on top for good. Amanda Leigh promptly answered with a baseline jumper to draw UNCG within one at 56-55, but the Spartans would get no closer.
Robinson hit a jumper with 1:08 to play to make it a three-point lead, and Ashley Lax hit the back end of a two-shot foul to make it a two-possession game with 24.6 seconds left.
UNCG had a couple of chances to inch closer on its next possession, but Floyd’s layup and Leigh’s 3-point attempt both went begging and the Spartans turned the ball over with three seconds left to seal it. Thompson added a pair of free throws with 1.5 seconds left for the final margin.
The Spartans trailed for nearly all of the first half, but shot 45.8 percent from the floor to keep it close. After being down by as many as 10 at 18-8, UNCG put together a 16-6 run to tie it at 24 with under a minute to play on TaShama Banner’s steal and Floyd’s stickback layup. Robinson, who had been held scoreless to that point, got a jumper to fall with 11 seconds before intermission to put the Wildcats on top at the half, 26-24.
A quick pair of layups from Girstautaite to open the second half gave UNCG its first lead of the day at 28-26 before Robinson tied with a jumper. The teams would proceed to trade the lead for the rest of regulation, with neither side leading by more than four until overtime.
The game featured 10 lead changes and 13 ties.
The Spartans matched the school record for blocked shots in a game with nine, with Hyson and Ashley Mullins swatting two shots each and Gini Grimsley, Girstautiate, Floyd, Leigh and Banner getting one each.
“They confused us with our switches and we didn’t react quickly enough,” UNCG coach Lynne Agee said of the game. “We wasted too much time trying to figure out what they were doing.
“We couldn’t stop Mercedes. She beat us off the dribble, we go to the zone, she’s in the middle of the paint. She’s just a hard matchup for us at the 3-spot, no question. I’m disappointed we didn’t come to play.”
The loss was UNCG’s third straight in SoCon play and fourth straight overall. The Spartans will attempt to snap both streaks on Saturday when they host Furman at 3 p.m. in Fleming Gym. Davidson hosts Georgia Southern Saturday at 2 p.m.
Western Carolina 83, Furman 74
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Kaila’Shea Menendez scored 20 points and Western Carolina used hot second half shooting and strong rebounding to down Furman 83-74 in Southern Conference women’s basketball action Monday evening on Carolina First Court at Timmons Arena.
In winning for the fifth time in their last six outings, the Catamounts (8-6, 4-2 SoCon) connected on 17-of-24 field goal attempts (70.8 percent) over the game’s final 20 minutes and used a 43-25 rebounding advantage to overcome a 35-31 halftime deficit and sudue the Paladins (8-7, 2-4 SoCon), who were paced by junior guard Lee Stephens’ career high 34 points.
The loss snapped Furman’s three-game winning streak and marked only the second setback in the last seven games for the Paladins.
Menendez, who scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half, converted 7-of-19 field goals, including her only 3-point attempt, and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line for Western Carolina, which finished the game shooting 51.8 percent from the field. Lauren Powell added 17 points, and Kristen Feemster chipped in 14 points for the Catamounts, who got a game high 11 rebounds and seven assists from Brooke Johnson.
Kali Holtfreter tallied 12 points, and Kelly O’Connor registered a career high 10 points for Furman, which shot well from 3-point range (9x19, 47.4 percent).
Stephens, who matched her 34-point performance registered in a season opening 82-68 victory over Clemson, connected on 11-of-19 field goal attempts, including 3-of-5 3-pointers, and 9-of-12 free throws. The Cincinnati, Ohio, product also contributed five assists and a game high four steals.
Furman maintained the lead seven minutes into the second half until Menendez tied the game at 46-46 with a pair of free throws with 12:53 left.
After that Western Carolina battled back from deficits three times before taking the lead for good on a Menendez three-point play for a 63-62 lead with 6:51 to go. A Lauren Powell layup with 5:34 remaining capped a 7-0 spurt and gave WCU a 67-62 advantage.
Furman got within two at 69-67 following an O’Connor 3-pointer at the 4:46 juncture, but the Catamounts answered a 9-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to take control of the game following a layup by Jessica Jackson, which made it 78-67 with 2:17 left.
The contest wrapped up a stretch of four games in eight days for Furman, which plays next against UNC Greensboro this Saturday in Greensboro, N.C. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m. The Catamounts return home to face Samford Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Samford 55, Georgia Southern 46
STATESBORO, GA ? J'Lisia Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) chipped in a career-high 17 points Monday night (Jan. 5) in Hanner Fieldhouse as the Georgia Southern women’s basketball team fell 55-46 to the Samford Bulldogs. Ogburn was the only Lady Eagle to score in double figures as Georgia Southern dropped to 9-6, 4-2. The Bulldogs improved to 10-3 overall and 5-1 in the Southern Conference.
Ogburn scored the first seven points for the Lady Eagles as Samford jumped out to a 21-14 lead by the third media timeout. A jumper in the paint from Ogburn with 1:31 left cut the lead to 23-20. But a three-pointer from Samford’s Megan Wilderotter would cause the Eagles to trail 26-22 as they headed to the locker room for the break.
The Lady Eagles outshot the Bulldogs in the first half, 39.1 percent to 36 percent, but only connected on 1 of 5 from beyond the three-point arc; Samford nailed 4 of 10 from three-point land.
Ogburn led all scorers at the half with 11 points. Ashley Melson (Newnan, Ga.) took the rebounding lead, pulling down three in the first twenty minutes. Top scorer Savannah Hill chipped in a team-high nine points and cleared away five rebounds in the opening stanza for the Bulldogs.
Samford came out strong to open the second half as Georgia Southern did not connect on a field goal until the 12:18 mark. Ogburn’s field goal ended a 13-1 run by the Bulldogs. Samford would lead by as many as 18 points before the third media timeout.
The Lady Eagles found themselves down, 47-29, at the third media timeout, but then went on a 9-0 run to cut Samford’s lead back down to nine. Back-to-back field goals from Samantha Williams (Kingsport, Tenn.) would cut the lead back to single digits. The Eagles would get to within seven, 51-44, off a fastbreak lay-up from Melson at the 2:07 mark.
But that would be as close as Georgia Southern would get as Samford hit 4 of 4 from the charity stripe to close out the game, 55-46.
“They’ve got to learn to play,” said head coach Rusty Cram. “That’s part of the learning experience. It’s a growing process.”
Ogburn broke her previous high of 16 points set against UNC Greensboro earlier in the season as she scored a team-high 17 points. Melson cleared away the most rebounds for the Eagles with six. Overall, Georgia Southern shot 34.6 percent from the floor.
Hill led the Bulldogs with 13 points, followed by three teammates who each chipped in 11 apiece. Hill and Emily London each pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Samford shot 38.6 percent in the game, 72.2 percent at the charity stripe. The Bulldogs visited the free throw line 18 times, scoring 13.
Georgia Southern continues conference play on Saturday, January 10, as it heads to face Southern Conference leader Davidson. Tip-off is set for 2 pm in Davidson, N.C. Samford visits Western Carolina Saturday at 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. CT).
Chattanooga 61, College of Charleston 55
CHARLESTON, S.C. ? Sophomore guard Tonia Gerty (Port Orange, Fla.) scored 18 points as a late rally by the College of Charleston (8-5, 2-4) fell just short in a 61-55 loss to Chattanooga (10-7, 6-1) Monday evening in a Southern Conference women’s basketball game at the Carolina First Arena in Charleston, S.C.
Trailing 48-39 with 6:38 remaining, Charleston used a 9-2 run fueled by five points from junior guard Jade Hughes (Spartanburg, S.C.) to pull to within 50-48 with 4:03 to play. Chattanooga then quickly extended the lead back to 55-48 with a three-pointer by junior guard Jenaya Wade-Fray and layup from senior forward Erin Ogan.
A layin by junior forward Brooke Kotcella (Anderson, S.C.), jumper by junior guard Ericka Williams (Blackville, S.C.) and a Hughes three-pointer made up a 7-2 Cougars rally that drew them to within 57-55 with 29 seconds to play. That would be as close as they would get, however, as the Lady Mocs sank four-of-five free throws down the stretch to secure the 61-55 victory.
In the first half, neither team was able to take a commanding lead as the two clubs battled through six ties and six lead changes. With UTC leading 9-7 at the 15:09 mark, Tonia Gerty scored all seven points in a 7-0 run to give Charleston a 14-9 lead with 13:06 left in the half. They pushed that advantage to 16-11 on a layup by junior center Deidra Jones (Irmo, S.C.) before Chattanooga battled back to tie the game at 16-16.
At that point, junior forward Shanara Hollinquest posted a dominant performance as she scored 12 straight points for the Lady Mocs to give them a 28-24 lead at the 2:45 mark. Erin Ogan would then sink a pair of free throws and a jumper to send Chattanooga to the half with a 32-26 advantage.
In the second half, UTC pulled out to a 40-30 lead before five straight points from Gerty closed the gap to 40-35 with 11:34 to go. From there, the Lady Mocs scored eight of the next twelve points to take their 48-39 lead before withstanding the Cougars late rally.
Hollinquest led the way for Chattanooga with a game-high 22 points, on 7-of-9 shooting, and 11 rebounds while Ogan notched a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Wade-Fray rounded out the Lady Mocs double-digit scorers with 13 points and four assists.
For Charleston, Gerty finished with a team-high 18 points and three steals and Hughes tallied 10 points on the night. Senior forward Sarah Moye (Alpharetta, Ga.) delivered a team-high eight rebounds while Kotcella added five points and seven boards. Ericka Williams chipped in with six points, four rebounds and three steals and Nikki Williams finished with six boards.
The Cougars will begin a three-game road swing this weekend that will take them to Appalachian State for a 1:00 p.m. game on Saturday, January 10 before heading to Davidson on Monday, January 12. Charleston will wrap up the trip at Wofford on Saturday, January 17. Chattanooga travels to face Western Carolina on Monday, Jan. 12 at 7 p.m.
Wofford 96, Southern Virginia 59
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ?The Terrier women’s basketball team ended its losing streak with a 96-59 win over Southern Virginia on Monday night. Sophomore Mahagony Williams and junior Kristin Bradley led the Terriers with 12 points apiece.
Wofford scored the first points of the game with a layup by Kate Dempsey, and the Terriers never looked back, leading by as many as 26 points in the first half and heading into the break with a 96-59 lead. The Terriers held Southern Virginia to only 19 points in the first half, 11 of which were from the free throw line.
In the second half, the Lady Knights stepped up their offense, led by Amanda Prestwich, who scored nine of her 11 points in the second half. It was not enough, however, to top the Terriers, who racked up 51 points in the second half, leading by as many as 40 points before coming away with the 96-59 victory.
Bradley matched her career-high 12 points in the game, while Williams also contributed 12 in the victory. Junior Kathlyn Varno added 11 points and freshman April Moorhouse picked up 10 for the Terriers. Moorhouse and sophomore Ashley Kroker led the team in rebounds with six each. Wofford took advantage of 26 Lady Knight turnovers, picking up 19 steals and 26 points off the turnovers.
Southern Virginia was led by junior Tricia Dixon’s 20 points, while freshman Amanda Prestwich added 11. Senior Jenne Comp led the team in rebounds with five. The Knights racked up 23 points off 26 Terrier fouls.
With the win, Wofford improves to 2-11 on the season, while Southern Virginia falls to 7-6. The Terriers will take the court again on Saturday as they face Southern Conference foe Elon. Game time is set for 3:00 p.m.