Davidson 62, Western Carolina 51
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Behind another double-figure game from senior Alex Thompson (Asheville, N.C.), the Davidson women's basketball team opened up Southern Conference play 2-0 for the fourth straight year with a 62-51 win over Western Carolina on Saturday afternoon as the Wildcats closed out their eight-game road swing in winning fashion.
Thompson eclipsed the double-digit mark in points for the sixth time this year with a game-best 19 points. She hit 6-of-10 field goals, including a trey, and was 6-for-9 from the charity stripe. The senior has hit for double figures in eight of the last 10 games dating back to last season.
The senior guard was joined in the double-figure column by Ashley Lax (Little Rock, Ark.), who has her own streak going as well. Finishing with 16 points, Lax has scored in double figures now five of the last six games. She was 6-of-14 from the floor, including draining three of the Wildcats' four treys for the game.
The guard duo helped Davidson (2-6, 2-0 SoCon) seal the win with four free throws in the last minute. The Wildcats went 6-for-10 overall in that closing minute to secure the win after Western Carolina had cut a 13-point lead down to five (56-51) with 2:14 remaining in the game.
A six-minute stretch about halfway through the second half where Davidson scored just three points, allowed the Catamounts (2-6, 1-1 SoCon) to chip away at the lead. Emily Clarke assisted in the rally with nine of her team-high 12 points and all 10 rebounds coming in the second half.
Thompson led the charge to start the game as she poured in 12 first-half points, five of them coming in a row that gave the 'Cats a 14-11 advantage they would never give back with 9:27 on the clock.
Fellow backcourt teammate Lax then got in on the scoring action, pushing the lead out to eleven when she scored eight straight points, including two three-balls. Her last trey from the left wing gave Davidson a 27-16 lead and forced Western Carolina to call a timeout.
Thompson capped off her scoring burst in the half with four of the last six Wildcat points, and fellow senior Monica Laune (Ashland, Neb.) closed the period with two free throws to send Davidson into intermission up 33-20.
Davidson's defense was also on display in the first half, forcing WCU to run the 35-second shot clock all the way down on many of its possessions, and holding the Catamounts to just 28 percent shooting (7-25). The Wildcats forced 11 turnovers in the period and 17 for the game.
WCU went on an 11-5 run to open the second half, bringing the Catamounts to within seven at 38-31 with 15:33 left.
Freshman Sophia Aleksandravicius (Pound Ridge, N.Y.) got the 'Cats back on track by scoring eight of the team¹s next 10 points. Her last bucket, a jumper from the baseline, gave Davidson a 51-38 lead. the freshman finished with eight points off the bench, matching Laune to give Davidson 16 of its 18 total bench points.
Davidson will return home to play Appalachian State in the 'Cats' home opener on Monday, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m.
Game Notes: Davidson's eight-game road trip to start the season was the longest in school history ... last year saw the Wildcats get off a 7-0 start in SoCon play, a school record ... Davidson has now won two of the last three meetings with Western ... head coach Annette Watts is just eight league wins away from hitting the 100-mark for her career.
Georgia Southern 70, Elon 58
STATESBORO, Ga. - Junior guard Janay Wilson (Warner Robins, Ga.) swiped the basketball from Elon's point guard and converted it on the fastbreak to give Georgia Southern a one-point lead, 46-45, midway through the second half. Immediately following Wilson's layup, the Lady Eagles went on an 11-4 run, with six points from Jamie Navarro (Naples, Fla.) for a 57-49 lead with four minutes remaining. Elon fouls and subsequent free throws helped the Eagles close out the victory over the Phoenix, 70-58 Saturday afternoon (December 5). Georgia Southern is now 3-4 with a 2-0 mark in the Southern Conference, while Elon picked up a loss in its SoCon opener, with a 2-3 overall record.
Elon tried to push Georgia Southern to a frenetic pace, pressing for a full 40 minutes, but the Lady Eagles maintained their composure and closed out the game with only six turnovers in the second half while causing 15. Georgia Southern hit two more baskets in the second half, 9-7, but the key was 17 points off Elon turnovers to secure the win. The teams battled through four ties and seven lead changes before the Lady Eagles took control of the game.
Guard Carolyn Whitney (Duluth, Ga.) scored her season-high total of the year with 17 points to lead four Lady Eagles in double-figure scoring. J'Lisia Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds while Navarro tied her career-best with six steals and finished the game with 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Senior forward Jessica Geiger (Stone Mountain, Ga.) had her first game this season with double-figure points with 10.
"Elon threw everything at us," said Lady Eagles Head Coach Rusty Cram. "This is two games in a row now with 40 minutes of pressure and we are handling it better and better each game."
Ali Ford led Elon with 15 points and Julie Taylor came off the bench for seven of her 10 total points in the second half. Kallie Hovatter and Ursula Cotton each had six rebounds for the Phoenix.
Both teams were nearly equal by halftime, shooting 48 percent from the field with Georgia Southern taking an early 18-14 advantage on the boards, but committing 14 turnovers. The Lady Eagles had an 11-2 lead four minutes into the game and held off the Phoenix through much of the first half. An 11-4 run sparked by a layup by Elon's Ursula Cotton and three-pointer by Julie Taylor made the score 19-16 Georgia Southern at the 8:06 mark.
Geiger hit a jumper from a sharp Navarro pass to pull the Lady Eagle lead up to seven, but Elon's Tiara Gause drove down the court for a basket, cutting the lead to five with six minutes left until the break. After picking up two points off Phoenix free throws, Hovatter hit her only field goals in the game over the next minute and Amber Wall added a basket. Elon suddenly had a one-point lead. The fifth lead change took Elon into halftime with a 32-30 score.
"I was a little disappointed in the first half with the offensive rebounding, but we made the adjustments and reached our goal - we kept them under 10 offensive rebounds for the game and we kept them 10 points under their scoring average," Cram said.
Georgia Southern steps out of conference to play four of its next six games. The Lady Eagles take to the road for the next two traveling up I-16 to Mercer on Friday, Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. and at UNC Asheville on Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m.
Chattanooga 69, Furman 56
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - On a night when she eclipsed a milestone, senior Jenaya Wade-Fray (Madison, Ala.) also provided the Lady Mocs with a much-needed second-option in a 69-56 Southern Conference win against Furman.
Chattanooga was led by senior Shanara Hollinquest (Sylacauga, Ala.) who scored a game-high 25 points, but Wade-Fray helped to put away the Lady Paladins with 14 points and eight boards. Wade-Fray also topped 1,000 points for her career in the win.
The Lady Mocs improved to 3-5 on the year and evened their SoCon mark at 1-1. Furman falls to 2-7 overall and 1-2 in SoCon action. It is Chattanooga's 17th consecutive win over Furman.
The first half started out with each team answering the other on the offensive end. There were four ties and seven lead changes in the first eight minutes of the game. The Lady Mocs took the lead when freshman Erin Helton (Cookeville, Tenn.) rolled one in from the baseline to go up 10-9 at the 11:49 mark.
Chattanooga led by as many as nine points in the opening half, on a lay-up by Wade-Fray with 5:32 left on the clock. Furman's Kendra Berry cut the lead to 27-23 with just over two minutes left. Both teams combined to go 0-6 the rest of the way, giving UTC a four-point lead at the break.
Furman started the second half on a 10-5 run. Regan Thompson's three from the corner gave the Paladins a 33-32 lead at the 16:28 mark. Thompson hit another 3-pointer to give Furman a 42-38 lead with 10:47 left.
Chattanooga answered with a 9-0 run to take control of the game for good. Hollinquest scored her 11th consecutive point on an and-one to put UTC up 43-42 with 10:02 left. She headed to the bench for some much needed rest and a one-point lead.
Over the past two games, Hollinquest was the only Lady Moc to reach double-figures, so when she took a breather, someone needed to step up. Freshman Michelle Davis (Cleveland, Tenn.) scored inside and Wade-Fray reached 1,000 career points on a pull-up jumper to extend the lead to 47-42. Helton and freshman Kayla Christopher (Oliver Springs, Tenn.) also got into the act to put UTC up 51-47 with 6:44 and Hollinquest still resting on the bench.
Hollinquest checked back in at the 6:22 mark and immediately converted a three-point play to give Chattanooga a 54-49 lead. Wade-Fray scored the Lady Mocs' next nine points to help put the game away.
UTC shot 52.8% from the floor and got 10 points off the bench from Christopher to go with Hollinquest and Wade-Fray's totals. Furman was led by Lee Stephen's 19 points, five boards and four assists.
The Lady Mocs are back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 9 when they host Wofford in the McKenzie Arena at 7:00 p.m. The game will broadcast on ESPN Radio 105.1 FM with Larry Ward, "the Voice of the Lady Mocs", providing play-by-play. Live stats, video and audio are also available on GoMocs.com.
Samford 71, Wofford 58
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Samford junior guard Emily London scored 20 points, making 5-of-7 three-point attempts, to lead the Bulldog women's basketball team to a 71-58 Southern Conference win over Wofford Saturday at the Pete Hanna Center.
"I was very pleased with our team and with their effort," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "This was a good, team effort. I thought we shared the ball well, having 13 assists and only 10 turnovers. Our goal was to force 18 turnovers and we forced 20. It was a good response (after Thursday's loss). I thought we would have a good response because we have good kids who have character."
With the win, Samford improves to 7-2 overall and 2-1 in SoCon play. Wofford drops to 1-6 overall and 0-2 in league play.
Behind London for Samford, freshman forward Hannah Dawson scored 13 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Junior forward Savannah Hill scored 12 points for the Bulldogs.
For Wofford, Mahagony Williams and Natalie Gramblin scored 13 points each. Rachel Brittenham added 11 points for the Terriers. Williams also led the team in rebounding with seven.
As a team, Samford shot 34.4 percent, while Wofford shot 44.0 percent. Wofford out-rebounded the Bulldogs, 37-35. Samford made 18-of-20 free-throw attempts in the game.
Samford jumped out to an early 7-4 lead with 12:27 to go in the first half after a jumper by Jazmine Powers. Wofford came back with a 9-3 run to take a 13-10 lead with 10:03 to go after a layup by Williams.
Samford answered with an 11-2 run to take a 21-15 lead with 4:57 left in the half after a jumper by Hill. Wofford fought back to tie the score at 25-25 with 1:33 to go in the opening period after a three-point play by Brittenham. Samford scored the final eight points of the half to take a 33-25 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Samford pushed its lead out to 12 at 47-35 with 14:55 to go after a three-point play by London. With Samford leading 49-41, the Bulldogs went on a 13-0 run to push their lead to 62-41 with 6:54 to go after a pair of free throws by Dawson.
With Samford leading, 66-49, Wofford went on an 8-1 run to cut the lead to 10 at 67-57 with 53 seconds to go after a three-pointer by Brittenham. Wofford, however, could get no closer as Samford came away with the 71-58 win.
Samford will take the next week off from competition due to finals and the Bulldogs will return to action on Monday, Dec. 14, when they play at Mississippi State. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start from Starkville, Miss.
College of Charleston 71, UNC Greensboro 60
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Brooke Kotcella (Anderson, S.C.) scored 13 points, including six in the last three minutes that helped stave off a furious UNC Greensboro rally, to lead the College of Charleston women's basketball team to the 71-60 win over the Spartans in front of 237 fans at Carolina First Arena.
Charleston opened the Southern Conference season with a win and improved to 5-3 overall and 1-0 in the league. UNC Greensboro dropped to 1-6 and 0-1.
The Cougars built a 24-point lead in the second half and led 55-31 with 9:40 remaining before UNCG's Amanda Leigh nailed three straight three-pointers and a jumper to cut the margin to 13 en route to a 22-6 run that saw the Cougar lead dwindle to eight, 61-53, with 3:31 to go. Kotcella responded with a three-pointer to increase the margin back to double-digits, and went three-of-four from the free throw line down the stretch to keep UNC Greensboro from getting any closer as the Cougars came away with the 11-point, 71-60 win.
Jade Hughes (Spartanburg, S.C.) scored all of her six points from behind the charity stripe, including four within the last 1:41 of the game.
"You would have preferred that things had continued to go very smoothly for us and that we stayed in control but reality is that they are a good team so that they aren't going to just sit back and get beat by 20 or 30 points," said Head Coach Nancy Wilson, who improves her record over the Spartans to 8-6.
The Cougars opened the first half with eight straight points, building a 25-point, 36-11 lead with 5:40 before halftime. UNC Greensboro cut the deficit to 17 with a 9-1 run over the next five minutes to trail 37-20 with 28 seconds remaining before three straight points by Ariel Hatcher (Monroe, Mich.) took the margin to 20 at the break, 40-20.
The Cougars held the Spartans to just 25.8 percent from the field in the first half, while connecting on 14-of-34 for 41.2 percent. For the game, Charleston was 40.4 percent from the field, compared to 30.4 for UNC Greensboro.
"I was very pleased with the first half and I thought we looked pretty sharp. They were struggling offensively and I think a lot of that had to do with our defense. "
After going 0-for-eight from beyond the three-point line, the Spartans were six-for-11 in the second for 31.6 percent. Charleston was just two-for-five in the second, after hitting four-of 12 in the first for 35.3 percent for the game.
Charleston out-rebounded UNC Greensboro, 46-41 and went 23-for-27 from the free throw line, compared to 12-for-17 for the Spartans. UNCG had 15 turnovers, compared to 21 for CofC.
Tonia Gerty (Port Orange, Fla.) had a team-leading 13 points, along with Kotcella, while Ericka Williams (Blackville, S.C.) had 10 rebounds to pace the Cougars as well. Williams posted her second career double-double with her 12 points on the night. Megan King (Fort Wayne, Ind.) tied her career-high with nine points on the night in just 10 minutes of action.
"I thought Ericka Williams came in and gave us a nice lift with her offensive rebounding. To be able to score off of those offensive boards is such a vital part of being a good basketball team and that was big for us tonight."
The Cougars host Elon Monday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. For tickets visit www.CofCSports.com or call 843.953.CofC (2632).