Women's Basketball Hammers out First SoCon Win
VIDEO: Post-win interview with Coach Chris Vozab
VIDEO: Post-win interview with Eagle Guard MiMi DuBose
VIDEO: Post-win interview with Eagle Guard Meredyth Fyre
VIDEO: Post-win interview with Eagle Forward Aishya Wofford
AUDIO: Radio replay Georgia Southern 52, Western Carolina 50 -- 1-7-2013
PHOTO GALLERY: Georgia Southern Game Day vs. Western Carolina -- 1-7-2012
STATESBORO, Ga. – MiMi DuBose scored 20 points and hit all five of her free-throw attempts down the stretch to lead Georgia Southern to a 52-50 Southern Conference women's basketball victory over Western Carolina in Hanner Fieldhouse Monday evening.
Western Carolina whittled an 11-point second-half deficit down to two points on three occasions in the last six minutes of the contest, but the Eagles (2-11, 1-3 SoCon), who lost two of their last three games by a basket, answered the bell each time.
The last came on a Janae' McKinney layup that made the score 47-45 with 2:20 to go. After two Eagle offensive rebounds, DuBose was fouled on a 3-point try and hit all three free throws to push the lead back to five. Two McKinney free throws made the score 50-47, and the Catamounts got a steal on GSU's trip down the floor.
After a timeout with 18 seconds left, Western Carolina opted to go for the tie, but Anna Claire Knight (right) was there to block Makensey Campbell's 3-point shot. DuBose got the rebound, was fouled and added two more free throws, finishing the game 11-for-11 from the charity stripe.
Campbell got a 3-pointer to go with 0.6 seconds left, and WCU called a timeout. The Eagles inbounded safely to Knight, and the buzzer sounded.
"Every time we've been in these tight games and haven't closed the deal, we've learned for the next time," said Georgia Southern coach Chris Vozab. "Each situation has been different, and we've addressed in practice what we need to do differently. I think that gave us the confidence and poise that we believed we would close it out today."
DuBose finished with 20 points, and Knight collected 14 points and seven rebounds. Meredyth Frye, who played in her 100th career game, tallied nine points, three rebounds and a season-high five assists. Aishya Wofford finished with five points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
McKinney scored 10 for the Catamounts (4-9, 2-2 SoCon), and Campbell finished with eight points and five rebounds. Kristen Lyon added eight points and six boards.
It was GSU's first home game since Dec. 7, and the win broke a nine-game losing skid for the Eagles.
Down by one point at halftime, GSU began the second half with a 14-2 run and opened a 41-30 lead on a Knight 3-pointer from the left corner with 12:42 remaining. WCU went an 11-2 run over nearly six minutes of game time and cut the margin to two points on a Lyon jumper. Knight and McKinney traded a pair of baskets until DuBose was fouled on the triple try.
The difference in the game came at the free-throw line, where Georgia Southern connected on 16-of-19 attempts and Western Carolina made 9-of-19.
The Eagles have a quick turnaround as they host Furman in a SoCon contest Wednesday at 7 p.m. It will be the third game in five days for GSU.
Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics and twitter.com/GSAthletics, and its new "Eagles GATA" mobile app for Android and iOS.
- Category: Women's Basketball
- Published on Monday, 07 January 2013 19:00
