GREENWOOD, S.C. – A long second-quarter scoring drought and another tough night from beyond the arc proved too much to overcome Wednesday evening as Georgia Southwestern fell 62-46 to Lander in Peach Belt Conference women's basketball action at Finis Horne Arena.
The Lady Hurricanes (10-14, 6-11 PBC) never led in the contest and saw Lander control nearly 40 minutes of game time. After a competitive opening quarter, a prolonged stretch without a field goal in the second period allowed the Bearcats to build a double-digit cushion that GSW could not erase.
Second Quarter Slips Away
Georgia Southwestern trailed just 19-12 after the first quarter and briefly cut the margin to seven early in the second.
But midway through the period, the offense stalled.
Following a
Ray'ven Robinson three-pointer at the 8:41 mark, GSW went more than six minutes without another made field goal. During that stretch, Lander pushed its lead to as many as 17 points and carried a 34-20 advantage into halftime.
The drought forced the Hurricanes into catch-up mode the rest of the night.
Brittle, Robinson Lead the Way
Madison Brittle and
Ray'ven Robinson paced the offense with eight and 12 points, respectively. Brittle added seven rebounds and two steals, while
Kassidy Neal contributed eight points and two steals of her own.
Tiara Hozumi pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.
Despite forcing 21 Lander turnovers and scoring 24 points off those miscues, GSW struggled to convert consistently in the half court.
Perimeter Struggles Continue
Georgia Southwestern finished just 4-of-23 (17.4%) from three-point range — the sixth time this season the Lady Hurricanes have shot under 20 percent from beyond the arc.
Overall, GSW shot 31.5 percent from the field and recorded just nine assists, marking the fourth game this season with fewer than 10 team assists.
While the Hurricanes committed only 15 personal fouls — tied for the third-fewest in a game this year — Lander capitalized from deep, knocking down 11 three-pointers at a 42.3 percent clip.
The Bearcats led by as many as 21 in the fourth quarter before GSW trimmed the final margin to 16.
Defensive Activity Not Enough
The Hurricanes were active defensively, tallying 13 steals — their third-highest total in a game this season — and holding Lander to just 14 points in the paint.
But 25 turnovers on the offensive end and the extended second-quarter drought created too steep a climb.
What It Means
GSW is one game up in the win column for the eighth and final spot in the PBC Tournament with three league games remaining. They're also a game behind both Lander and Clayton State for the sixth seed.
Next Up
The Lady Hurricanes will have to play spoiler on Saturday at Georgia College & State University's homecoming to help distance themselves from one of the two teams chasing them for the eighth seed.
