UNC Greensboro 45, Georgia Southern 42
STATESBORO, Ga. - Monique Floyd hit the go-ahead layup with 2:20 to play and forced a crucial jump ball with 30.6 seconds left as UNC Greensboro rallied past Georgia Southern on Tuesday, 45-42 for its second Southern Conference win of the season.
Kendra Smith finished with a game-high 12 points for UNCG (5-7, 2-2 SoCon), while Floyd scored eight, all in the second half. Jessica Geiger and Krista Tate had nine each to lead Georgia Southern (6-5, 2-1 SoCon), with Tate grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds. UNCG's win - its fourth in the last five games - snapped Georgia Southern's five-game winning streak.
UNCG trailed 35-26 with 12:51 to play, but finished the game on a 19-7 run. Floyd's jumper with 12:06 to play kicked off an 11-0 spurt, which saw the Spartans take their first lead of the day at 37-35 on Dayshaun Richbow's fastbreak layup with 7:22 to play.
Georgia Southern would tie it twice before Smith's jumper gave UNCG a 41-39 lead with 3:33 left, but Samantha Williams nailed a 3-pointer from the wing to give the Lady Eagles a one-point edge with 2:41 to go.
Floyd answered with her go-ahead layup on the other end, but that was the last field goal for either team. After a couple of empty possessions by both teams - including a pair of missed free throws from J'Lisia Ogburn - the Lady Eagles had the ball and a chance to take the lead with less than a minute to play.
GSU got the ball out of bounds after a missed Carolyn Whitney 3-point try, but had just four seconds left on the shot clock. The Lady Eagles got the ball in to Geiger, but Floyd tied her up, giving the Spartans possession of the ball with 30.6 to play.
Georgia Southern was forced to foul to stop the clock, but had yet to put UNCG in the bonus. When the Lady Eagles finally committed their seventh foul, true freshman Richbow stepped up to the free throw line and calmly sank both ends of her one-and-one to make it a three-point game with just 26.3 seconds left.
The Lady Eagles got the ball back with a chance to tie it, but Richbow got a hand on a GSU pass and knocked the ball loose. Georgia Southern retained possession, but could not get a shot off before the final horn sounded.
The win was UNCG's first in Statesboro since the 2006-07 season.
After finding itself down 11 at 22-11 with 8:31 left in the first, UNCG closed the half on a 9-3 run to cut it to five at the break. Smith got the spurt started with a baseline jumper followed by a pair of Lakiah Hyson free throws. An Amanda Leigh 3-pointer made it seven straight points for UNCG before Georgia Southern's Ro-Ro Smith's stickback put the Lady Eagles back up by six at 24-18.
Smith added a layup of her own to get it back to four points before Tate hit the front end of a one-and-one to make the score 25-20 in GSU's favor.
Winners of two straight SoCon games, the Spartans will try for their third straight when they take on Davidson in Davidson, N.C., on Jan. 2 at 2 p.m.
Samford 62, Cornell 46
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Samford junior guard Emily London scored 19 points to lead the Bulldog women's basketball team to a 62-46 over Cornell win Tuesday evening in the consolation game of the Marriott Cavalier Classic at Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena.
"I thought our team played well for about 30 minutes," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "I thought we really controlled the game and came back with a lot of energy after a physical game against Virginia. We executed on both ends of the floor and built a 29-point lead, and we were able to play a lot of people so hopefully that will help us down the road."
Samford improves to 9-5 on the season with the win. Cornell drops to 5-6 overall with the loss.
For Samford, London made 6-of-7 field goals, including a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point range. Senior guard Monica Maxwell scored 11 points for the Bulldogs, while senior guard Megan Wilderotter and junior forward Savannah Hill added eight points each for Samford.
Hill and freshman forward Hannah Dawson shared the team lead in rebounding with eight each. Wilderotter and Hill had four assists each to share the team lead in that category.
Cornell was led by Allie Fedorowicz with 10 points. Lauren Benson led all players with 10 rebounds for the Big Red.
In the first half, Samford jumped out to an early 7-2 lead. With the Bulldogs leading, 7-4, Samford went on a 7-0 run to push its lead to 14-4 with 13:37 to go in the opening period after a three-pointer by London. Cornell scored the next six points to cut the lead to four at 14-10 with 12:00 left in the first half.
Samford pushed its lead out to 12 at 27-15 with 6:09 to go after a three-pointer by Dawson. With Samford leading, 30-19, the Bulldogs closed the half with an 8-2 run to take a 38-21 lead into halftime.
Samford scored the first nine points of the second half to push its lead to 26 at 47-21 with 15:37 to go after a layup by Wilderotter. Samford pushed its lead out to as much as 29 at 54-25 with 13:27 to go in the contest.
Cornell then scored the next 11 points to cut the lead to 18 at 54-36 with 8:34 to go in the game. Samford pushed the lead back out to 22 at 62-40 with 3:27 to go after a free throw by J'Quita Babineaux. Cornell scored the final six points of the game to make the final score 62-46.
For the game, Samford shot 42.6 percent, including a 43.5-percent effort from three-point range. Cornell made 39.5 percent of its shot, and 15.4 percent of its three-pointers. Samford out-rebounded Cornell, 33-27.
The Cornell game concludes the 2009 portion of Samford's schedule. The Bulldogs will return to action on Jan. 2, when they play host to Georgia Southern. The Southern Conference game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center.
Chattanooga 78, Richmond 69 (2OT)
JERSEY CITY, N.J. - After letting a four point halftime lead slip away to a 14 point deficit, the Lady Mocs mounted a second half comeback and posted a 78-69 double-overtime win over the Richmond Spiders in the opening game of the St. Peter's College Holiday Classic at the Yanitelli Center in Jersey City, N.J.
Senior Shanara Hollinquest (Sylacauga, Ala.) led all scorers with 25 points and 13 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the year while freshman Erin Helton (Cookeville, Tenn.) notched the first of her career with 14 points and 11 boards. Senior Jenaya Wade-Fray (Madison, Ala.) was the third UTC player in double-figures with 15 points while freshman Kayla Christopher (Oliver Springs, Tenn.) grabbed 10 rebounds.
Chattanooga (7-6, 3-2 SoCon) jumped out to an 8-0 lead over the Spiders to start the game not allowing Richmond (8-4, 0-0 A10) a basket through the first 7:29 of the game. However, the Spiders would not be kept down for long as they battled back into the game tying it up 12-12 with 6:11 to play before the half. Both teams continued to struggle from the field going into halftime with UTC leading 20-16.
In the second half, Richmond quickly took control starting the half on a 12-3 run as Chattanooga could only muster a 3-pointer from Wade-Fray to start the period. Richmond continued its run outscoring the Lady Mocs 14-5 over the next 4:54 to take its largest lead of the game at 42-28 with 11:09 to play.
Helton hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 11 and Richmond responded with a 3-pointer from Kara Powell who capped off an eight-point scoring barrage over a two-minute period to put the Spiders back up by 14. From there on it would be all Chattanooga in a race to the end of regulation as the Lady Mocs outscored the Spiders 22-8 over the final 8:15 of the second half.
In the first overtime period, redshirt freshman Kiara Smith (Rome, Ga.) led the Lady Mocs with five points as both teams managed 10 points in the period. The second overtime would be all UTC.
While Powell started the period with a 3-pointer, Wade-Fray grabbed a steal at mid-court for a fast-break layup and followed it up with a 3-pointer to put the Lady Mocs up for good at 68-66 with 3:10 to play. The five points sparked a 12-0 run with three free throws from Helton, a pair from Hollinquest and another jumper from Wade-Fray.
Richmond was led in scoring by Brittani Shells with 21 points. Powell had 14 and Crystal Goring chipped in 10. Shells and Rachael Bliney each had seven boards.
The Lady Mocs will play the winner of the Morgan State/St. Peter's game Wednesday evening at 7:30 at the Yanitelli Center. Larry Ward, the "Voice of the Lady Mocs" will have all the action live on 95.3, The Pulse or online at www.GoMocs.com.
College of Charleston 64, Charleston Southern 59
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Brooke Kotcella (Anderson) scored 16 points while Jade Hughes (Spartanburg, S.C.) added 13 as the College of Charleston women's basketball team survived a late Charleston Southern rally to defeat the Bucs, 64-59, in action tonight in front of 311 fans at Carolina First Arena.
The College of Charleston improved to 9-3 while Charleston Southern dropped to 6-5. The Cougars opened the home season 6-0 for the first time in Division I history and the 9-3 overall record is the best since the team opened the 1988-89 season 11-0.
Tonia Gerty (Port Orange, Fla.) opened the second half with a basket to increase the Cougar lead to 19 (45-26) before Charleston Southern went on a 17-1 run to cut the margin to three, 46-43, with 10:28 remaining. CofC responded with two three-pointers and a jumper to end the threat and led by 11, 54-43 with 8:38 to go.
Nine unanswered points by the Bucs cut the deficit to two at the 4:33 mark but that would be as close as they would get as the Cougars used back to back three pointers to increase the lead to six. After CSU's Katie Tull nailed a three-pointer with 43 seconds to go to cut the margin to three, Deidra Jones (Irmo,S.C.) responded with a layup with 20 seconds remaining to help the Cougars seal the 64-59 win.
The Cougars outscored the Bucs 20-3 in the opening seven minutes of the game and kept the double-digit lead throughout the rest of the half. Charleston Southern cut the margin to 13 on a couple of occasions, but shot just 24.2 percent in the half to head into the locker room trailing by 17, 43-26. The Cougars shot a blistering 60 percent, going 18-for-30 from the field.
The Cougars' offense left them in the second half as they only shot 29.6 percent from the field. For the game Charleston shot 45.6. The Bucs shot 27.7 percent for the game and were just eight-for-36 from beyond the three-point arc. The Cougars were eight-for-19 in three-pointers and out-rebounded the Bucs, 45-42. While CSU was 15-for-24 from the free throw line, the Cougars were only four-for-eight.
Following Kotcella and Hughes in scoring was Ericka Williams (Blackville, S.C.) with 10 points. Kotcella and Jones paced the team in rebounds with nine apiece. Tull led CSU with 14 points, while Ali Schwagmeyer followed with 12. LeChell Rush led the team in rebounds with seven.
The Cougars are next in action at Chattanooga Saturday, Jan. 2 at 7 p.m.
Davidson 64, Newberry College 55
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Freshman Sophia Aleksandravicius (Pound Ridge, N.Y.) tallied her third double-double of the year and Davidson shook off a rusty first half to score a 64-55 non-conference win over Newberry College on Tuesday evening in women¹s basketball action at John M. Belk Arena.
The Wildcats closed out the 2009 year in winning fashion with their fourth win in the last five contests to improve to 4-7 overall. Newberry, which came in winners of six of its last seven games, fell to 8-3 on the season.
Aleksandravicius helped the Wildcats shake off a poor shooting first half (9-of-34 for 26.5 percent) to finish with a game-high 22 points, the third time this year she's clipped the 20-point mark, 10 rebounds and a season-best five blocks, one away from tying the single-game school record.
The double-double is her second in the last three games, and it¹s the fourth time in the last five games the freshman has led the Wildcats in points and rebounds.
She hit 9-of-20 shots from the field and added three more points at the charity stripe. The forward scored 12 of her 22 points in the second half, including 11 of them in the first eight minutes to start the new half as Davidson started to find its shooting touch.
Her lone three-ball in the game at the 11:51 mark gave the Wildcats a 41-37 lead after they had trailed at halftime 25-23, and then later 35-32.
Newberry would not fold though, twice tying the game up in the late stages at 46-all and 50-all after a pair of free throws each by Courtney Browne and Anita Bulcher. Bulcher was one of two Scarlet & Gray players to hit the double-digit mark in points with 10, while adding eight rebounds.
Helen McKinney led the Scarlet & Gray with 12 points, getting all 12 from behind the arc. She hit four of the team¹s six treys.
Davidson finally took the lead for good on a Aleksandravicius free throw with 6:05 left to give the OCats a 51-50 lead, and then later pushed it out to seven (59-52) on a trey by senior Alex Thompson (Asheville, N.C.) at the 1:24 mark.
Thompson helped seal the win for the 'Cats by draining four straight free throws in the closing seconds to cap off a seven-point run of her own. Fellow backcourt teammate Ashley Lax (Little Rock, Ark.) closed the scoring with a free throw for the 64-55 win.
Thompson ended the game with 12 points and was joined in the double-digit column by sophomore Kristen Johnsen (Wayne, Pa.) with a career-best 13 points off the bench. She also hauled in a new personal-best nine rebounds as the Wildcats had 45 as a team.
Davidson, coming off a 16-day break after seeing its Dec. 18 game at Radford canceled, could not shake out of its long layoff in the first half. The Wildcats missed 14 of their first 15 shots and fell behind by nine, 16-7, after a Keisha Henderson layup with 6:34 left in the first period.
Freshman Katrin Chiemeka (Marienthal, France) brought the 'Cats within four when in her fist collegiate game, she drained a three-pointer for a 19-15 score and 3:57 left.
But, after Aleksandravicius tied things up at 23-apiece on a baseline jumper with 11 seconds, Newberry¹s LeAnne Watson pulled down a missed jumper, one of 16 rebounds on the night for the forward, and beat the buzzer with a five-foot jumper in the paint to give the Scarlet & Gray a 25-23 halftime lead.
In the midst of playing five of its next six games at home, Davidson returns to league play to open 2010 and hosts UNC Greensboro on Saturday, Jan. 2, at 2 p.m.
Game Notes: Davidson's defense stepped up in the second half, holding Newberry to 26.7 percent shooting ... the game featured eight ties and four lead changes ... Davidson finished the second half shooting 48.3 percent ... freshman Barbara Sitton dished out a team season-best eight assists ... the win was the Wildcats¹ first against a non-conference foe this season ... Davidson had its eighth straight winning month of December, ending the month at 3-1.
Coastal Carolina 61, Elon 49
CONWAY, S.C. - Lei Lei Hairston and Urysla Cotton had career days as the Elon women's basketball team fell 61-49 to the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Tuesday evening. Cotton pulled down a career-best 19 rebounds, seven off the offensive glass, on her way to her second double-double in as many games. It was the first time since 1996 that an Elon player has tallied 19 rebounds in a game. The senior also netted 10 points in the effort. Hairston scored a career-best 14 points to lead the team. Elon dropped to 5-7 on the season, while Coastal Carolina improved to 9-3.
"I think, defensively, we played as hard as we could have," head coach Karen Barefoot said. "We have to shoot the ball better, especially against a team that is undefeated on their home court."
It was a tale of two halves as the Phoenix shot 40.6 percent in the first 20 minutes of play compared to a dismal 20.6 percent in the second half. Elon netted 17 points off of turnovers and 22 points in the paint in the first half, but only had one point off of a turnover and eight points in the paint in the second half.
Coastal Carolina opened the first half with an 8-3 run, before the Phoenix made it one-point game, 10-9, on a layup by Cotton. Ali Ford beat out a Chanticleer guard for a loose ball at half-court that sparked a 16-6 run. After two quick CCU buckets, Hairston hit a jumper to cut the lead to two at 15-13 with 7:41 left in the half. Elon took its first lead of the night on a Cotton basket at the 6:29 mark.
The Phoenix opened up to a 25-17 lead on back-to-back jumpers by Kelsey Evans and Kallie Hovatter with under three minutes on the clock. Cotton ended the first half with a bucket that sent the Phoenix into the locker room holding a 27-19 lead.
Elon was held scoreless for the opening six minutes of the second half as the Chanticleers went on an 11-0 streak to take a three-point lead at 30-27. Coastal Carolina used an 8-2 run to take a 47-38 lead with just over seven minutes remaining in the game.
Cotton drained a free throw with 2:42 on the clock that made it a five-point game at 51-46. Tiara Gause hit her first three of the season for Elon's final points, but the Chanticleers went 5-for-6 at the charity stripe in the final minute of play for the win.
The Phoenix, who entered the game ranked among the best in the Southern Conference in shots from behind the arc, made just one three in the loss.
Elon returns to the court on Saturday, January 2 at 2 p.m., when it resumes Southern Conference play against Appalachian State in Boone, N.C.