Samford 66, Appalachian State 64
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Samford freshman guard Krista Stricklin hit a jumper as time expired to give the Bulldog women’s basketball team a 66-64 Southern Conference win over Appalachian State Monday evening in the Pete Hanna Center.
Appalachian State’s Maryah Sydnor hit a shot with just seven seconds left to tie the score at 64-64. The Bulldogs then got the ball down court quickly and Stricklin’s shot went through the net as the final horn sounded.
Stricklin led Samford in the win with a career-high 18 points, and she grabbed nine rebounds. Senior Jazmine Martin scored 15 points, while fellow senior Hannah Dawson had 13 points, playing just 13 minutes due to foul trouble. Dawson became Samford’s all-time leader in career starts, starting the 113th game of her Samford career.
As a team, Samford held Appalachian State to just 39.0 percent shooting overall and 15.4 percent from three-point range. Samford made 45.9 percent of its shots overall and 43.8 percent from three-point range. Samford out-rebounded Appalachian State, 33-31.
For Appalachian State, Sydnor led the way with 18 points. Courtney Freeman scored 13 points, while Katie Mallow added 11 points for the Mountaineers.
Samford got off to a hot start in the first half, scoring the first nine points of the contest to take a 9-0 lead with 15:11 to go in the first half after a three-pointer by Martin. Appalachian State scored the next five points to cut the Samford lead to four at 9-5 with 14:26 left in the first half after a layup by Freeman.
With Samford leading, 19-13, the Bulldogs went on an 8-0 run to push its lead to 14 points at 27-13 with 4:07 to go after a pair of free throws by Kendall Schwantz. Samford eventually pushed its lead out to 17 points at 33-16 with 1:14 left in the opening half following a pair of free throws by Martin. ASU scored the last four points of the half and Samford held a 33-20 lead heading into halftime.
After Samford pushed its lead to 15 points at 35-20 with an early bucket by Dawson, Appalachian State went on an 8-2 run to cut the lead to nine points at 37-28 with 18:21 to go after a three-pointer by Mallow.
Samford pushed its lead back out to 13 points at 45-32 with 13:33 to go after a layup by Martin. With Samford leading, 50-38, ASU went on an 11-2 run to cut the lead to three points at 52-49 with 6:29 to go after a layup by Anna Freeman.
The Bulldogs pushed their lead back out to nine points at 58-49 with 5:34 to go after a pair of free throws by Keke Fletcher. Appalachian State then went on a 13-3 run to take its only lead of the game at 62-61 with 1:48 to go after a layup by Courtney Freeman.
Two free throws by Taylor Reece and one by Stricklin gave Samford a 64-62 lead with 1:01 to go in the game. Neither team could score until Sydnor’s jumper with seven seconds left tied the game, setting the stage for Stricklin’s game-winning shot to give the Bulldogs the 66-64 win.
With the win, Samford improves to 10-9 overall and 7-3 in Southern Conference play. Appalachian State drops to 12-5 overall and 6-3 in league play.
Furman 80, College of Charleston 71
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Teshia Griswold scored 19 points and Furman used flawless free throw shooting down the stretch to tame the College of Charleston, 80-71, in women’s Southern Conference basketball action Monday evening at TD Arena.
Griswold’s 19 points headlined a five-player double figure scoring effort by Furman (8-11, 4-6 SoCon), which drained its final 22 free throw attempts and scored its last 18 points at the free throw line to claim its second straight win and second league road win of the season.
College of Charleston (8-12, 4-7 SoCon) got a game high 27 points from Alyssa Frye, but the Cougars could do nothing about the Paladins’ work at the charity stripe, where Furman converted 28-of-30 chances (93.3 percent), including 25-of-27 over the contest’s final 20 minutes.
The victory moved Furman ahead of the College of Charleston into sixth place in the league standings heading into the start of the season’s second half, which begins this Saturday at home with a 1:30 p.m. clash against SoCon frontrunner Chattanaooga.
Griswold drained all seven of her free throw opportunities en route to her 19 points. Katilin Murphy followed with 18 points, Sarah Durdaller 14, Brittany Hodges 11, and Janice Roberts finished with 10, including a perfect 8-for-8 performance at the charity stripe.
Durdaller registered a game and career high 11 rebounds.
Furman, which never trailed in the contest, led by as many as 14 points at 24-10 midway through the first half following a pair of Roberts free throws.
The Cougars twice trimmed Furman’s lead to four in the first two minutes of the second half, but the Paladins responded by stretching their advantage to 13 points, the latest coming on a Durdaller jump shot that put Furman up 52-39 with 11:06 to go.
Alfreyea Tolbert’s layup at the 7:54 mark capped an 8-0 Charleston run and made it a 52-45 game.
Another Tolbert layup with just under four minutes remaining again pulled the Cougars to within five at 60-55, but the Paladins quickly answered on their next possession with a Griswold field goal, the last of the game by Furman, with 3:30 showing on the clock.
From that point the Paladins were sent to the free throw line nine times and converted all 18 opportunities to keep the College of Charleston at bay.
Furman shot 46.2 percent for the game, finding the mark on 24-of-52 field goal attempts, and posted a 45-34 rebounding advantage.
The Paladins’ strong work at the free throw line and decided rebounding margin helped overcome 22 turnovers. Furman’s bench also posted a 34-15 scoring advantage in the contest.
Elon 70, Georgia Southern 59
ELON, N.C. – Kelsey Evans became Elon’s all-time blocked shots leader as the senior notched four blocks to help the Elon women’s basketball team to a 70-59 win over Georgia Southern tonight, Jan. 28, in Alumni Gym, marking the sixth straight home win for the Phoenix. Elon closes out the month of January with a 7-1 record to improve to 11-8 overall and 8-2 in Southern Conference play, while the Eagles fall to 4-15 (3-7 SoCon).
Evans also recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Ali Ford led all players with 23 points and notched three steals. Ford knocked down two threes and is now two shy of breaking the SoCon’s all-time record.
Elon also saw impressive performances from starters Kelsey Harris and Sam Coffer. Harris marked her second double-double of the season with 10 points and tied her career high of 11 rebounds. Coffer was the third Elon player to finish with double-figures on the boards tonight after tying her career high of 11 as well.
The Phoenix tied its season high on the glass, hauling down 50 boards to outrebound the Eagles by 10. Overall, Elon went 26-of-68 from the field to shoot 38 percent and finished with 38 points in the paint. GSU shot 37 percent from long distance but only managed a 29 percent clip from the field (17-of-57).
Elon struggled in the beginning part of the first half, falling behind by nine, 25-16, at the 7:53 mark. The Phoenix then put together an 11-0 run, which was capped by a Ford jumper, that spanned five and a half minutes and gave Elon its first lead of the game, 27-25 with 2:33 left.
A three by Ford helped the maroon and gold to its largest lead of the first frame, 30-26, before the Eagles responded with a three by Anna Claire Knight with nine ticks left on the clock to pull within one, 30-29, at halftime.
With the Eagles leading by one early in the second half, 36-35, Elon used a 10-2 run off six points by Evans and four by Ford to claim a seven-point edge, 45-38, with 11:12 to play.
GSU would answer and tie the game for the sixth time at 47-all at the 8:33 mark. The score remained close for the next several minutes with neither team taking more than a three-point advantage until six straight points by Harris put the maroon and gold ahead by seven, 63-56, with just over two minutes to play.
After a layup by Evans kept the Phoenix in the lead by six, 65-59, with 1:28 left on the clock, the Eagles were forced to foul to attempt a comeback. Elon answered the challenge, hitting 5-of-6 from the charity stripe in the final 42 seconds to finish with the 11-point victory.
Davidson 65, Western Carolina 56
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Shneeka Center hit a tie-breaking trey with under two minutes to go and Davidson closed on a 9-0 run to win its fourth straight, coming back against Western Carolina 65-56 on the road Monday evening at the Ramsey Center in women’s Southern Conference basketball action.
Sophia Aleksandravicius scored 18 of her game-high 22 points in the second period in helping Davidson (12-8, 9-1 SoCon) wipe out an eight-point halftime deficit. She added 11 rebounds for her 10th double-double of the season and second in as many games. The senior went 10-for-14 from the field, hitting the 20-point mark for the third time this year.
Davidson scored 41 points in the second half, outscoring the Catamounts 41-24, while shooting a sizzling 61.5 percent (16-26) to finish the game at 46.6 percent.
Tied at 56-all, Center drained a three-ball from the left corner as the shot clock was winding down to give the ‘Cats a 59-56 lead with 1:57 on the clock. Davidson’s defense then forced a shot-clock violation on Western’s possession and Aleksandravicius hit a five-foot jumper on the next time down the floor for the Wildcats to make it 61-56 with 56 seconds remaining.
A one shot and out by WCU (5-14, 3-7 SoCon) forced it to foul, putting Laura Murray at the line with 36 ticks left. The junior calmly canned two free throws and a Jasmine Calin breakaway layup off a pass from Barbara Sitton finished off the run and the win.
Murray reached the double-digit mark with 11 points and tied her career-high with seven assists. Calin had six off the bench, while Center hit for 12 points for the second game in a row.
Western’s Rena Wakama had 15 points and Lindsay Simpson added 11, nine of them on shots from behind the arc. The Catamounts, who led by as many as nine points in the second half, hit nine three-pointers for the game.
Davidson used a 19-9 run, with Aleksandravicius scoring eight of the points, to open the second half and get it back in the game.
Western used the three-ball in the first half to grab a 32-24 lead at the break. The Catamounts hit three of their six triples for the half during a 16-2 run that erased Davidson’s 12-5 early lead and give them a 21-14 advantage with 7:43 left. Wakama had 10 of the points, hitting a pair of shots from behind the arc.
Center kept things close for the Wildcats, netting six points and hauling in five rebounds, four on offense, off the bench. She finished with a season-high typing seven rebounds as Davidson had a 37-26 edge on the boards.
UNCG 87, Wofford 75
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The UNCG women’s basketball team shot 67 percent from the floor in the second half Monday and 59 percent overall as the Spartans blew past Wofford 87-75 for their first Southern Conference victory of the season inside Benjamin Johnson Arena. The triumph also marked the first for the Blue and Gold on the road this campaign.
The 87-point outburst and 59-percent shooting performance were both season highs. It was also the most points scored by UNCG since the Spartans dropped 88 on Elon in a 48-point victory Jan. 20, 2007.
Freshman guard Lucy Mason (Stone Mountain, Ga./Chamblee Charter) was sensational, netting a career-high 25 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field. She was also 2-for-3 beyond the arc and 5-for-6 at the free throw line. Joining Mason in double figures was classmate and guard Ebona Goins (Greensboro, N.C./Dudley) who dropped in a personal-best 16 points while also hitting a trio of three-point field goals. UNCG also benefitted from 11-point performances by two juniors in guard Breonna Patterson (Greensboro, N.C./Dudley) and Janae’ Stevenson (Columbia, S.C./Eau Claire). Dishing out six of the Spartans’ 21 assists on the night was Patterson, who also tallied three steals.
UNCG’s shooting accuracy extended to all parts of the floor as the Spartans nailed six of nine three-point field goal attempts (67 percent) and 13 of 18 free throws (72 percent). The Blue and Gold also won the rebounding battle 31-29 and pulled down 11 offensive rebounds. Effective defensive pressure forced the Terriers to cough up the ball 21 times, leading to 26 points off those miscues and 10 fast-break points.
The furious pace to the game began from the outset as both teams looked to bring their best games. A jumper by Goins tied the proceedings at 13 with 13:32 left in the half before two free throws by Mason capped a 13-6 run and left the score at 26-19 at the 9:15 mark.
Wofford was able to bounce back, scoring the next eight points, as the Terriers snagged a 27-26 advantage when Daniella Motley dropped in a layup with 7:46 on the clock. However, as they did all evening, the Spartans countered, putting together a modest four-point run to assume a 30-27 lead at the 5:17 mark. Logan Morris would end a 9-4 run with layup to give the home side a 36-34 cushion with 2:41 left in the period, but sophomore guard Jessica Collins (Raleigh, N.C./Eckerd College) responded with a three and UNCG out-scored Wofford 7-2 the rest of the half to enter the break with a 41-36 edge.
Mason led the Spartans with eight points in the first 20 minutes while sophomore guard Jarae Savage pulled down four rebounds. UNCG also recorded 11 assists, four by Patterson, and nailed 18 of their 34 attempts from the field (53 percent). The Blue and Gold ended up with a 19-16 edge on the glass with seven offensive rebounds.
Motley hit a layup to pull the Terriers to within 48-47 with 16:17 left in the game before hitting another to leave the Spartans with a 52-51 lead as the clock ticked down to 14:37. UNCG was able to put together the game-defining stretch from there as the defense forced steals and the Spartans converted on the other end. When the dust cleared, UNCG found itself with a 69-54 cushion after a pair of free throws by Savage.
The Spartan edge grew to as big as 18 down the stretch as Goins fired in her third triple to make the score 78-60 with 6:24 remaining. Wofford was unable to come any closer than 11 the rest of the way as UNCG put the finishing touches on quite an impressive outing.