Chattanooga 65, UT Martin 54
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team made it a sweep, surging past fellow system school, the University of Tennessee at Martin 65-54 Saturday night at the Elam Center.
Sophomores Chelsey Shumpert and Jasmine Jones along with senior Ka’Vonne Towns combined for 45 of Chattanooga’s points. Shumpert scored 13 of her team-high 16 points in the second half along with three assists and a pair of steals in the frame. She closed out the game making 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc with three rebounds and four assists.
Towns was 5-of-10 from the 3-point line, a career-high for long range bombs and closed out the game with 15 points, four assists and six steals. Joyner shot 70 percent for the game making 7-of-10 and grabbed four rebounds.
Joyner started the game with a pair of layups and Shumpert capped off the 12-3 run with a 3-pointer with 14:37 to go in the opening half, but it would be all SkyHawks for the next 5:41 as UTM went on a 14-0 run to get out front 17-12 with 8:48 to play in the first half.
The teams played it even the remainder of the half and the Mocs trailed 33-28 at intermission.
Joyner started the scoring for Chattanooga again in the second half. The Mocs went on an 8-2 run to take its first lead in more than 17 minutes on a layup by Joyner to make it 38-37 at the 17:14 mark. The ShyHawks briefly retook the lead but Joyner would tie it up on another layup, making it 40-40 with 16:09 to play.
Towns snagged one of her six steals just a moment later and passed the ball down the court to Shumpert who was racing ahead for a fastbreak layup and the lead for good with just 15:40 to play. That started a 10-0 run putting the Mocs out front 48-40 with just over 14 minutes to play.
UT Martin cut the lead to four on a pair of layups but the Mocs outscored the SkyHawks 13-2 over the next 3:51 for Chattanooga’s largest lead of the game, 61-46, with 8:45 to play.
After shooting 40 percent in the opening frame, the Mocs went 15-of-30 in the second half and was 25-of-55 for the game. The Mocs were 11-of-31 from beyond the arc for the most 3-pointers made in a game this season.
UT Martin outdueled the Mocs 33-29 on the boards led by Tiara Caldwell’s double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ashia Jones had a game-high 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting and was 5-of-7 from the free throw line.
Chattanooga returns home to host No. 7 Stanford at the Roundhouse. The game is set to tip off at 6 p.m.
Furman 96, Southern Wesleyan 73
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Allison Beasley poured in a career high 24 points and tied a school 3-point shooting record to power Furman past Southern Wesleyan, 96-73, in women’s basketball action Saturday afternoon at Timmons Arena.
Beasley, a sophomore wing, tied a school standard by draining eight 3-point shots on 12 attempts for her 24 points, keying Furman (9-3) to its fifth straight victory. The Robbinsville, N.C., product’s accurate stroke headlined a 55.2 percent overall shooting effort for the Paladins, who made 11-of-24 attempts from beyond the arc.
Brittany Hodges, coming off a 30-point performance in a win over UNC Asheville on Wednesday, followed with 22 points, which she tallied in just 19 minutes of playing time, and Whitney Bunn added 12 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and four blocks — part of a school record 15-block performance by Furman.
All 11 players in uniform for the Paladins scored as Furman posted its 19th triumph in its last 21 home games.
Southern Wesleyan placed four players in double figures, led by Bria Seda’s 13 points. Christiana Perkins had 12 points and Chelsie Waters and Cayse Branyon finished with 11 each for the Warriors.
Furman led 18-16 six minutes into the game before Hodges and Holli Wilkins combined to convert three baskets in a 6-0 spurt that pushed advantage to 24-16.
A Kelsey Ellis jump shot at the 9:00 mark pushed the Paladin lead to 33-22, and Furman stretched it to 54-35 by halftime.
Shianne Goodwin posted career highs with seven rebounds and five blocks as the Paladins finished with 50-34 advantage on the boards.
After playing five home games in 11 days, Furman will break to complete final exams before returning to action on Dec. 20 at Georgia.
ETSU 64, Eastern Kentucky 49
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The ETSU women’s basketball team got its third win in a row on Saturday evening inside Brooks Gym with a 64-49 victory over the Eastern Kentucky Colonels behind 16 points from Shamauria Bridges and a double-double from Destiny Mitchell.
With the win, ETSU improves to 6-4 on the season while EKU drops to 4-4 on the year.
In addition to sophomore guard Bridges’ game-high point total, the Bucs also got 15 points and 10 rebounds from redshirt senior forward Mitchell. The senior’s double-double is her third this season and 29th of her career. Additionally, senior forward Serena Clark and junior guard Chandler Christopher each added nine points while freshman point guard Tianna Tarter contributed seven points, six rebounds and six assists.
The Bucs will have a quick turnaround with a trip to Morehead, Kentucky to take on the Morehead State Eagles on Monday, Dec. 15, at noon.
Wofford 87, Montreat 36
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford College women’s basketball team had four players score in double figures as the Terriers rolled past the Cavaliers of Montreat, 87-36, Saturday afternoon in the Benjamin Johnson Arena.
Jordan Frazier led the Terriers’ scoring efforts with 15 points, shooting 7-of-15 from the field while knocking down one 3-pointer. Maria Corella scored 12, draining two shots from long range. Ashton Fleming and Kentra Washington added 11 each.
Wofford (3-5) controlled the game on the defensive end of the floor, limiting Montreat (1-10) to shooting 27.7 percent from the field. The Terriers’ press was effective, as Wofford stole the ball 24 times – the second most in a single game in program history. Wofford forced 35 Montreat turnovers, leading to a staggering 50 points off turnovers for the victors.
Frazier had a career day on the defensive end, grabbing a personal best nine steals. The Norcross, Ga. native has amassed 201 career steals, launching her into the eighth in the Wofford record books past Ricaye Harris (2001-2005, 199 steals) and Nakia Mister (2002-06, 197 steals).
Wofford ended the game with a 51 point lead. The margin of victory is Wofford’s largest in a single game since the 2001-02 season, in which the Terriers defeated Limestone College 102-43.
The team had no player compete for more than 23 minutes, with every active member of the team participating. Wofford’s bench produced 37 of the Terriers’ 87 points.
Wofford beat out Montreat on the boards, winning the rebound margin 44-31. Junior Khadijah Joyner pulled down a team-best eight rebounds in the contest.
Montreat’s Hannah Calloway led all scorers, netting 18 points while shooting 5-of-8 from long range. Five other Cavs scored, with none achieving double-figure points.
Wofford will head to Virginia for their next game, playing Big South opponent Radford on Monday night. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. in the Dedmon Center.