Saturday, Dec. 21
Highlights
Little Rock 63, Memphis 60
The Memphis Tigers dropped an absolute nail-biter to the Little Rock Trojans on Friday afternoon. The 63-60 final came down to the final possession, but the Tigers were unable to put the finishing touches on the comeback, having trailed by as much as 14 in the game.
Backed by Jamirah Shutes' career-high 25 points and double-figure scoring from Alana Davis and Taylor Barnes, the Memphis Tigers fell just short in a furious finish.
Coming out of halftime, the Tigers got off to a slow start, and struggled to recover. After fighting back at the end of the first half, Memphis struggled to finish possessions and control the ball. Shutes continued to keep the Tigers alive on the offensive side of the ball, scoring five of the seven points for Memphis. After giving up a run to close the quarter, Memphis was still within striking distance, down 51-37.
Opening the final period, Memphis switched up its defense, blitzing out to a 9-2 run to trim the margin to single digits. Free throws continued to keep the Tigers in the game, and defensive intensity helped keep Little Rock scrambling to score. With a jumper in the fourth quarter, Shutes surpassed her previous career-high of 20 points. A couple more scores down the stretch left her at a career number of 25. The Trojans made timely baskets to keep the Tigers at bay to the final whistle.
Houston 66, George Mason 56
The Houston Cougar Women's Basketball team opened its two-game road trip with a 66-56 victory over George Mason on Friday inside EagleBank Arena.
Houston had a pair of scorers reach double-figures, including a career-best and game-high 17 from Julia Blackshell-Fair. Jasmyne Harris also finished in double-figures with 16 points. On the glass, Houston picked up a huge night from Alyssa Okoene who pulled down 12 rebounds for her fourth career double-digit rebounding game.
Houston would control the waning minutes of the first period, finishing the quarter with eight-straight points from Blackshell-Fair to cut the lead to 18-16 after one. The Patriots held the Cougars to just 28.6 percent (4-of-14) from the field in the second quarter while holding them scoreless for the final 3:13 of the period.
Houston took complete control in the third quarter. Following a George Mason free throw to open the frame, Houston answered with an 11-0 run to regain the lead. Jasmyne Harris started the spurt with a 3-pointer before buckets from Hawkins and Barnes and a pair of Dorian Branch free throws gave the Cougars a 38-34 advantage.
Houston kept the momentum going into the fourth quarter, grabbing eight of the first 10 points of the frame. After a pair of Mason free throws, Jasmyne Harris buried a 3-pointer from deep, which Okoene followed with an offensive board and a putback, before Harris dropped another triple to push the lead to 58-46 and force a George Mason timeout.
George Mason would use 4-0 runs twice over the remainder of the game to cut the lead back to eight, but they would never pull any closer. With the score at 62-54 with just over a minute to play, Okoene knocked down a pair of free throws before Blackshell-Fair picked up a steal and a fast-break layup the other way to seal the game 66-56.
Virginia 74, USF 67
USF led Virginia for 32 minutes on Friday night at Rollins College but could not stop a 29-point Cavalier fourth quarter and fell 67-74 in the Florida Sunshine Classic.
A bright spot on the night was USF's four scorers in double figures, the seventh time this season USF has seen four or more scorers in double figures, and fourth consecutive time. Laura Ferreira led USF in scoring with 17 points and added two rebounds and two assists. Enna Pehadzic had a big night, hitting clutch second-half three pointers to keep the Bulls in the competition and amassing 15 points. She added seven rebounds, one assist and one steal in the effort. Pehadzic was named to the All-Tournament team for her success this week in Winter Park.
After Virginia (5-7) opened the first quarter with a three-pointer, USF (9-4) sped out to a 16-2 run to own a 25-15 advantage after the first 10 minutes. The Bulls led by as much as 15 in the first half, and took a 40-27 advantage to the locker room.
But USF offense ran cold in the third quarter when the Bulls scored just nine points on 5-of-17 from the field. The Bulls hung on to maintain a 49-45 lead going into the final period. Virginia exploded for a 29-point quarter and made six threes and 16 free throws to steal the lead from USF.
Rebounding, which is critical to USF's success, did not go the Bulls' way, as USF was outrebounded for the first time this season 34-42. USF and Virginia were neck and neck in shooting, as Virginia (26-of-62) only made two more field goals than the Bulls (24-of-61). But late fouls sent Virginia to the line 22 time to USF's 12 which stretched the deficit.
Old Dominion 56, Tulane 48
Tulane women's basketball dropped a hard-fought 56-48 decision to Old Dominion in the first round of the 23rd annual Tulane Classic at Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse on Friday afternoon.
The Green Wave's loss was their first in six games at home this year and seven overall dating back to last season. The loss was Tulane's first in the Tulane Classic since 2007, snapping a 20-game winning streak in its annual home tournament.
Sophomore forward Krystal Freeman led all Tulane scorers as she poured in 9 points on 3-of-6 shooting from the floor. Freeman also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds.
Tulane trailed by just 5 points (27-20) heading into the locker room at halftime despite shooting just 36.4 percent from the floor and suffering 13 first-half miscues.
Coming out of the locker room, ODU extended its lead to 8 thanks to Victoria Morris' 3-pointer, but the Green Wave responded in a big way by going on an 11-2 run to give them a 33-32 lead with 5:36 to go in the third quarter. Kaila Anderson keyed the run for Tulane, as she connected on a pair of 3-pointers.
Tulane's one-point lead would not last for long as ODU reclaimed the lead immediately after a timeout and would not trail for the remainder of the game.
UCF 53, Liberty 45
The UCF women’s basketball team extended its win streak with a 53-45 victory over Liberty in the St. Pete Shootout in the McArthur Center on Friday evening.
UCF (10-1) led Liberty (2-9) by four points, 15-11, at the end of the first quarter. The Knights led by as many as nine points in the second quarter and took a 26-22 advantage into halftime.
The Knights used a 12-2 run to take a 13-point advantage, 38-25, with 2:19 left in the third quarter and held a 42-32 edge heading into the fourth quarter. The Flames were able to pull within four, 42-38, in the fourth quarter, but the Black and Gold held off Liberty to earn the win.
UCF extended its win streak to seven games, the longest streak since the 2010-11 campaign.
Two Knights finished in double figures, led by Kay Kay Wright’s 17 points. Kayla Thigpen added 16, finishing one point shy of her season high. Jamesha Paul collected a season-best six rebounds. Brittney Smith tied her career-best with three steals.
UCF extended its win streak to seven games – its longest streak since the 2010-11 campaign.The Knights improved to 6-1 away from home this season.The Black and Gold’s 10-1 record is its best start in the Division I era.
ECU 71, South Carolina State 63
In the final game of the Carolinas Challenge, the ECU women's basketball team used a defensive second-half to push past South Carolina State 71-63 on Friday night in the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.
The Pirates had three players score in double-digits and each had a quarter that they dominated. Williams had her best game of the season, making her first four shots from behind the arc, including three in the first quarter, and finished with 18 points. In the second, Raven Johnson tallied seven of her game-high 19 points. Also reaching double figures was Necole Hope, who finished with 10 points.
ECU (9-2) held a slim lead on two occasions in the fourth quarter, but responded each time. The first came when ECU led 60-56 after six straight South Carolina State (6-7) points. Necole Hope picked the Pirates up with a three-pointer from the top of the key. Minutes later, the ECU lead had shrunk to 63-62 with under 1:30 remaining. Lashonda Monk found Ariyana Williams cutting backdoor for a layup and then Salita Greene took a charge at the other end. Four straight free throws, two by Williams and two by Monk helped the Pirates pull away for the win.
The Pirates broke out of a shooting slump, hitting eight shots from behind the three-point arc. It is the second-highest three-point total since the Pirates hit nine against Maryland Eastern Shore in the season-opener.
South Carolina 88, Temple 60
A huge third quarter from #25 South Carolina lifted the Gamecocks to an 88-60 victory over Temple on Friday night at Colonial Life Arena. South Carolina improves to 7-4 overall, while the Owls dip to 3-7.
Junior Shantay Taylor shined with career highs of 14 points and three steals, tying a career best with nine rebounds. Graduate student Alliya Butts led the Owls with 19 points and four assists.
A hot start from Temple and Taylor saw the junior score seven early points, as Temple led 10-8. South Carolina got hot from three, taking a slim 13-12 lead midway through the action. From there, it was a 12-3 Gamecocks run to close the frame with the home team up 25-15.
The teams traded threes to open up the second, before South Carolina went up by 11, its largest lead of the game. Temple battled back with a 9-2 run, closing the gap to 38-32 on an Alexa Williamson bucket.
A huge 27-6 third quarter advantage saw South Carolina run away with things. After a Taylor bucket made it an 11-point deficit, the Gamecocks went on a 21-1 run, to break things open.
Cincinnati 85, Howard 51
University of Cincinnati women's basketball closed out the nonconference portion of its schedule with a dominating, 85-51 victory over the Howard Bison on Friday night at Fifth Third Arena.
After a brief deficit early in the first quarter, the Bearcats (8-5) imposed their will on the Bison (7-5) for the duration of the contest to notch their third-straight win and their highest scoring margin and total of the season.
Sophomore forward IImar'I Thomas continued her hot streak with a new-career-best 23 points – on 10-of-11 shooting -- after posting 20 in each of her last two outings. The sophomore also grabbed a game-best 17 rebounds and recorded new career marks of six assists and three steals. The forward was aided in the win by 13 points, six rebounds, and four assists by junior guard Antoinette Miller, 11 points from senior guard Nikira Goings and 10 points, eight rebounds, and a career-best four assists by junior forward Angel Rizor.
Coming off of a commanding, Crosstown Shootout win last week, the Bearcats struggled a bit early, but quickly found their footing. After Howard took a 7-2 lead with six minutes left in the opening quarter, UC went on a 17-0 run over the duration of the period to take a 19-7 advantage at the end of one. Armed with a solid lead, the home team kept the pressure on the visitors in the second quarter, outscoring the Bison 17-10 to hold a 36-17 surplus going into halftime.
The Red & Black did not let up in the third quarter, doubling up HU, 24-12, to take complete control of the game with a 60-29 advantage heading into the final period of play. Up comfortably, the Bearcats rested their starters for much of the fourth quarter, but still managed to outscore the opposition, 25-22, as they wrapped up their eighth win of the season.
UC shot the ball at a season-high 55-percent clip from the field and continued its domination on the glass with 50 rebounds. The Bearcats also scored 56 points in the paint, got 26 points from their bench, scored 22 points in transition, and tallied 18 points off of 17 offensive boards. In addition, the Red & Black notched a season-high 24 assists on 35 made field goals.
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