Elon 64, Wofford 47
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - A near double-double from sophomore guard Ali Ford lifted the Elon University women's basketball team to its sixth straight Southern Conference win on Sunday afternoon, Jan. 16, as the Phoenix claimed a 64-47 win over the Wofford Terriers. The victory marks career win No. 200 for Elon head coach Karen Barefoot.
"The relationships with the coaches and players have been the most important and memorable part about this for me. It's very rewarding when you see the hard work from the players translate into something great," Barefoot said of her 200th career win. "When you're trying to build a winning program it's about instilling a championship mentality and I believe we are well on our way to being at that level at Elon."
Elon improves to 11-5 and 6-2 in league play, while Wofford drops to 6-9 (2-5) with the loss. The Phoenix sits tied atop the SoCon with UNC Greensboro and Appalachian State.
Ford scored a game-high 17 points on 5-of-14 shooting from the field and 6-of-6 shooting from the free throw line. Ford grabbed a career-high eight rebounds in the win as well, while tallying four steals.
Sophomore forward Kelsey Evans was the only other Phoenix player in double figures, as the Raleigh, N.C. native scored 13 points and grabbed four boards.
Elon out-scored Wofford in the paint, 40-24, while claiming a 52-41 advantage on the boards. Elon held Wofford to 21 points below its season average in the win, limiting the Terriers to 32.1 percent shooting from the field.
"Wofford is a very tough and physical team and made us work for everything tonight. They can shoot the three extremely well and we made it very difficult for them to do so," Barefoot said. "We wanted to put together 40 minutes of tough and physical basketball on both ends of the court and we did that today. When this team plays together as one we are very tough to beat. We've been grinding it out in practice every day and it really translated on the court today."
After a sluggish start by the Phoenix offense, Ford helped Elon take an early 13-10 lead with under 13 minutes to play after picking Wofford's Logan Morris of the ball at midcourt and taking it to the basket for the easy layup.
The Phoenix kept the Terriers at arm's length going into the locker room at intermission, 31-25, after Aiesha Harper took the ball the length of the court for the basket with six seconds remaining in the first half secure the six-point edge.
Elon shot just 28.9 percent from the field in the opening frame, but an 8-for-10 performance at the charity stripe proved to be the difference. The Phoenix controlled the glass, 27-21, in the first half and forced 15 turnovers from the Terriers.
Elon took a nine point lead with 16:44 remaining in the second half after a Hairston steal allowed Julie Taylor to leak out for a fastbreak layup, giving the Phoenix its largest lead of the game, 38-29, forcing Wofford head coach Edgar Farmer to call a timeout.
The Phoenix claimed a 15-point lead and forced another Wofford timeout with 12:04 left after a no-look behind the back pass from Ford to Kelsey Harris following a Terrier turnover led to a basket and a 46-31 lead.
Elon went up by as many as 16 points down the stretch, securing its sixth-straight win in conference action and career victory No. 200 for Barefoot.
Elon plays again on Wednesday, Jan. 19, when it faces cross-town rival UNC Greensboro at 7 p.m. for a Southern Conference tilt inside Fleming Gym.
Davidson 71, Samford 62
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Davidson lit up the nets to the tune of 70.8 percent in the second half and four 'Cats scored in double figures to send the Wildcats to a much-needed 71-62 Southern Conference win on Sunday afternoon over Samford at John M. Belk Arena.
Davidson (6-9, 2-5 SoCon) exploded for season-high tying 48 second-half points in snapping its three-game skid and erasing the memories of a buzzer-beating defeat to Chattanooga on Friday night.
Sophia Aleksandravicius and Laura Murray led the way during the hot-shooting second half, combining for 24 points in the half, and they finished with 21 and 17 points, respectively, for the game. The duo hit 9-of-13 shots in the period and Davidson drained 17-of-24 totals shots overall, including 4-of-5 from behind the line.
The pair also hauled in a game-high eight boards each, while Aleksandravicius had four blocks and Murray dished out five of Davidson's 16 assists.
Also clipping the double-digit mark was Shneeka Center with 12 points off the bench, nine from behind the arc, and Kristen Johnsen with 11 points.
Samford (12-6, 5-4 SoCon) put three in double figures with Emily London getting 16 points, 12 of those from three-land. Hannah Dawson had 15 points, hitting all four of her field goals from the three-point line and Savannah Hill added 14 points. Those three Bulldogs combined to can nine of the team's game-high 11 shots from three-point range.
Down 26-12 after Dawson hit a three-pointer with 5:33 remaining in the first half, Davidson started its comeback by finishing out the half on a 11-0 run capped off by a Center three-ball in the closing seconds for a 26-23 halftime score.
The momentum continued for the 'Cats as they opened up the new half scoring eight of the first 11 points, including a Murray shot from three-land, and Samford was forced to burn a timeout with Davidson holding its first lead of the game, 31-28.
Then tied at 33-all with 14:50 on the clock, Davidson caught fire, rattling off a 22-9 run over the next seven minutes to grab a commanding 55-42 lead, with senior Ashley Lax bringing the crowd to its feet on a three-pointer to end the run, and Samford had to call another timeout. Aleksandravicius got the run started with a three-point play and scored the first eight points of the spurt.
Samford would close to within four twice in the last three minutes, but each time Davidson answered and finished out the win going 7-for-10 at the free throw line in the last 1:30 to seal it.
Davidson shot 50 percent (25-50) for the game, the first time its shot 50 percent or better in a game since Nov. 26 vs. North Texas. The Wildcats also held a 38-25 edge on the boards, the 10th time it has out-rebounded the opposition.
Davidson concludes its three-game homestand with a 7 p.m. contest against Appalachian State on Wednesday, Jan. 19.
GAME NOTES: Of the 'Cats five league defeats, three of them have come by a total of four points ... Aleksandravicius' four blocks gave her 100 for her career ... it's also the sophomore's seventh career 20-point game ... Murray has now had four games this year with five assists ... Davidson dominated in the paint, scoring 32 points to Samford's 14 ... the win in the series was the Wildcats second as they trail 3-2 ... Center's three treys matched a season-high ... Barbara Sitton had a season-best seven boards ... Davidson also scored 48 second-half points vs. Radford earlier this season ... it's the third time this year Davidson has put four players in double figures.
Appalachian State 70, Chattanooga 54
BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State women's basketball snapped a 26-game losing skid to its Southern Conference foe Chattanooga Sunday afternoon, as the Mountaineers hammered their league rival 70-54 in the Holmes Center. ASU's home game winning streak remains intact as the Apps have now won 15 straight on their home floor and improve to 12-4 on the season and 6-2 in SoCon action, while UTC falls to 8-10 overall and 5-4 in league play.
First half action was knotted twice and the two teams traded leads, before a Kelsey Sharkey three-pointer provided the Black and Gold with the spark they needed, closing out the half on a 14-1 run.
Sharkey capped off the game yet again stellar defensively, recording a game-high 11 rebounds, while also tallying two steals and one block.
Chakeitha Weldon also came alive for Appalachian in the final five minutes of the first period, as she chipped in seven points during the spurt,
including the last four of the half to put ASU on top 32-24 at intermission.
Continuing to be a force offensively, Appalachian started the second half off strong, outscoring the Lady Mocs 11-4, with sophomore Ashlen Dewart proving to be unstoppable in the post.
Chattanooga had no answer for Dewart, as she poured in 10 of Appalachian's first 15 points of the second half, to extend the Apps' lead to 16, up 47-31 with a little over 12 minutes left to play.
Dewart was phenomenal in the contest, scoring a game-high 28 points, on 11-19 shooting, including going a spotless 6-6 from the charity stripe, while also grabbing six rebounds and swatting one shot.
Holding on to its 16 point advantage, it was Courtney Freeman that helped to keep the Mountaineers in control of the game, as she chipped in nine second-half points, all coming in the final eight minutes of play to propel Appalachian to the double-digit victory.
Freeman also grabbed eight rebounds and dished out two assists.
Appalachian opened the contest strong, as two Anna Freeman treys saw ASU jump out to a 10-5 lead.
However, paced by buckets by Whitney Hood, UTC continued to hang around and a mini 7-0 Lady Mocs spurt saw Chattanooga take its largest lead of the game up seven with under six minutes left until the half.
ASU responded, and was able to turn up the intensity and pressure, heading into halftime up eight points.
Posting solid play and executing both offensively and defensively, ASU never relinquished its advantage and downed Chattanooga 70-54.
The challenging 2010-11 slate carries on for the Mountaineers, as they take to the road for a three-game road swing, beginning at Davidson, Wednesday January 19. The contest between the two teams is slated to tip off at 7 p.m. from the Wildcats' Belk Arena.
Notes: The win over UTC is ASU's first-ever over Chattanooga in the Holmes Center ... snaps a 26-game losing skid to the Lady Mocs ... gives ASU its first win over UTC since December 29, 1998 ... gives the Mountaineers' their 15th-straight home win.
Western Carolina 75, Furman 66
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Western Carolina women's basketball (6-11, 4-4 Southern Conference) extended its home winning streak to three with a 75-66 win over Furman (6-10, 2-5 SoCon) Sunday in the Ramsey Center.
The Catamounts were led by junior Caitlin Hollifield with 15 points who just missed a double double with nine rebounds. She was one of four Western Carolina players in double figures, followed by Kaila'Shea Menendez with 12 and Rena Wakama and Emily Clark, each with 11.
Furman led only once in the game, 3-2, at the 19:22 mark, when Wakama answered with a three-pointer and the Catamounts led the res t of the game. Western Carolina built its largest lead of the first half, by 13, 31-18, with 5:05 remaining. Furman cut the lead to eight off a pair of free throws by Janice Roberts but sophomore Janae' McKinney pushed the lead back to double digits with a jumper.
Western Carolina led 37-27 at the half, but Furman cut the Catamounts lead to just one points, 39-38, to start the second half thanks to a 9-2 run. Furman would keep the WCU lead to single digits for most of the second half, but the Catamounts seemed to hit a basket at just the right moment to keep Furman at bay.
The Catamounts' 75 points are the most points scored by the Catamounts since posting 78 against UNC Asheville on November 17, 2010. Western Carolina shot 47.5 percent from the field and out-rebounded Furman 39-28. Furman's Kaitlin Murphy led all scorers with 18 points. Murphy's teammate Kendra Berry added 16 points for the Paladins.
Freshman forward Shauna Terry extended her block streak, she has had at least one blocked shot in the last five games. In the game against Furman, Terry had five points, four rebounds and one steal.
Western Carolina returns to the road next weekend traveling to Chattanooga on Saturday, January 22, and Samford on Monday, January 24.