Lady Eagles Rout Bulldogs, 56-38
12/17/2009 2:23:00 AM | Women's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Georgia Southern led by 13 points at halftime and picked up another 22 in the second half, defeating UNC Asheville, 56-38 Wednesday night (December 16) in the Justice Center. The win pushed Georgia Southern to 5-4 overall and Asheville drops to 3-6. The win closed out a road swing for the Lady Eagles who return home to begin a four-game homestand starting Saturday, December 19.
Senior Carolyn Whitney (Duluth, Ga.) led the Eagles' offense at the half with 10 points. Fellow classmate J'Lisia Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) picked up seven points in the second half to take the team-lead with 16 points on the night. Krista Tate (Atlanta, Ga.) led on the boards for the Lady Eagles with eight and Jessica Geiger (Stone Mountain, Ga.) followed pulling down seven rebounds.
Georgia Southern forced 18 Asheville turnovers allowing 24 Lady Eagle points. Led by Navarro's six assists, GS recorded 18 assists on the evening to Asheville's eight.
Scoreless from three-point land on nine attempts at intermission, Asheville finished 1-of-19 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, GS, 50.0% at the half, added two more treys from three-point land, to outscore the Bulldogs, 21-3 from three-point range.
Georgia Southern shot 38.6 percent from the floor while holding Asheville to 26.4 percent shooting. The Bulldogs were paced in scoring by Lindsey Montgomery who scored 11 points in the second frame to finish with 14. Montgomery posted her second consecutive double-double with 10 rebounds.
"I'm certainly thankful for the win," said head coach Rusty Cram. "I thought Jamie [Navarro] and Samantha [Williams] both played solid all night for us and I thought our bench came off and posted big minutes for us again."
The producer of an old-fashioned three-point play, junior Navarro (Naples, Fla.) extended Georgia Southern's lead to 39-23 in the second half within the opening three minutes. Samantha Williams' (Kingsport, Tenn.) second three-pointer of the evening pushed the Lady Eagles in front, 46-31, at the 10:25 mark. Held to only three points in the opening frame, Montgomery lit up the floor for the Bulldogs in the second half, collecting nine points including a '3' that pulled the score to 46-34 at the third media timeout. Down the stretch, Georgia Southern saw buckets from Candice Ivy (Roswell, Ga.) and Williams to close out the 56-38 non-conference win.
Georgia Southern opened with a quick 11-4 lead before the first media timeout, with treys from Whitney and Navarro helping the Lady Eagles' offense. UNCA cut the lead to three points with a 4-0 run midway through the half, but GS built its lead back to eight points, 20-12, with Whitney hitting her second trey and buckets from Ogburn and Ivy. Asheville chipped away at its deficit pulling to within five points twice, but the Lady Eagles maintained control, holding onto a 13 point lead, 34-21, at the break.
"We were all pleased with the win and are looking forward to getting back home," said Cram. "It is always tough playing during the holidays, but even harder playing on the road. So I know the team is looking forward to the next four games in Hanner."
The trip to Asheville closed out the two-game road trip and the Lady Eagles return to the comforts of home on Saturday, December 19 welcoming Western Carolina. The return to Southern Conference action marks the first of four straight home games for Georgia Southern. Tip is set for 3 p.m. in Hanner Fieldhouse.
