SOUTH ALABAMA DOMINATES GEORGIA STATE TO OPEN SBC PLAY
MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women's basketball team (8-4, 1-0) dominated the Georgia State Panthers (4-8, 0-1), 88-52, behind four double-digit scoring efforts to open Sun Belt Conference play on Friday at the Mitchell Center.

Savannah Jones lead the way with a game-high 15 points on 5-of-11 from the field, including 3-for-8 on three-point buckets and 2-of-2 from the charity-stripe. The redshirt freshman guard also brought down four rebounds, dished out three assists and rejected a pair of shots in the win.

Erin Autio collected 11 points on the evening. The senior guard went 5-for-5 at the charity-stripe, while adding three rebounds and a pair of helpers to her stat line.

Chyna Ellis and India Hall each contributed 10 points in the matchup. Hall had a season-high in points, making her first field goals of the season by shooting 5-of-8 from the field, and grabbed a season-high four rebounds, while dishing out an assist. Ellis rejected two shots and collected three boards on her 4-of-6 shooting night.

Kennedi Centers and Antoinette Lewis each had nine points. The sophomore and freshman forwards went 4-of-4 and 4-of-6 from the field, respectively. Lewis collected seven boards and Centers brought down five.

GAME FACTS
- A three-point play by Shaforia Kines gave the Jags their biggest lead of the first quarter, 18, and capped off a 10-0 run.
- South Alabama held Georgia State to 2-of-16 from the field in the opening quarter. GSU mad just one of its last 11 attempts to close out the first as USA lead 25-11.
- The Jags cruised in the second outscoring the Panthers 22-7.
- South Alabama closed out the second quarter on a 10-0 run
-A layup by Lewis gave the Jags their biggest lead of half, 29 points, as the second came to a close with South Alabama leading 47-18.
- USA shot 47.5 percent from the field in the opening half, as it held GSU to just 13.5 percent from the field.
- South Alabama held off Georgia State in the second-half outscoring the Panthers 41-34 in the final two quarters.
- The Jags won the rebound battle 49 to 45.
- USA dominated points off the bench and points scored in the paint winning each battle 53-18 and 44-18, respectively.
- South Alabama never trailed during the contest leading for 38:22, with the game being tied for a mere 1:38.

NOTES
- Georgia State's 13.5 shooting percentage in the first-half is the lowest by a Jag opponent in any half this season.
- The Panthers 21.3 percent from the field for the game was the worst by a South Alabama opponent this season.
- This was the second-time this season the Jags have had four-double digit scorers, last time was at Southern Miss on Nov. 30.
- Freshman Alexis Sykes scored her first career-points a Jag dropping eight in the win.
- Hall's 10 points tied a career-high that she set on Dec. 15, 2015, at the Mitchell Center against William Carey.
- Ellis recorded 10 or more points for the 10th time this season, while it was Jones' eight and Autio's third time this season.
- Lewis' seven boards tied her season-high for the third time this season.
- Ellis needs 18 blocks to become the all-time leader in Sun Belt Conference history and needs 39 points to reach 1,000 for her career.
- The Jags have played 101 games without going to overtime.
- This was the 526th consecutive game with the Jags making a three-point bucket.

THEY SAID IT
USA head coach Terry Fowler
Opening statement: "It was good to come out here and shake the rust off, you never know what you're going to get coming off a long layoff and we just came and really played well. We got off to a great start shooting the basketball, but defensively we did an outstanding job holding them to 18 points in the first half. I thought that set the tone for the rest of the game."

On what an emphatic win to begin Sun Belt Conference play does for the program: "It was huge because from a coaching standpoint you never know what you're going to get in that first game. For us to come out and play like that — I thought in practices I could tell that our kids were ready to play games — it's been nine days since we had a game and I thought they were excited to play. Now you get into a rhythm as we start to play every other day, we're looking forward to that and excited about it."

On what the team did defensively in the first half: "We talked about stopping their dribble penetration and contesting every shot, and I thought that's what we did. Every shot they took in the first half was a contested shot. They did a great job getting offensive boards in the first half, we tried to keep the ball out of the paint but even when they got in there every shot was a contested shot."

On being able to use so many players: "I thought it was big. We are always telling our young ladies that everybody has an important role in our program, and whatever your role is, is important to the mission. To have India come out and play well and Alexis Sykes come in gives them an opportunity, we may need them at some point but now they've been in the fire already."

Junior F/C India Hall
On her performance: "It was just my teammates giving me the ball and concentrating on finishing."

On getting a win to open Sun Belt play: "It's a good start, but we have plenty more to give. We're a good team and I think we are going to go far in the conference."

Redshirt freshman G Savannah Jones
On winning the Sun Belt opener: "It was good for us because we start off 1-0 in conference, it gives us energy going into our next games. It [the win] was a great feeling."

On her play in the game: "I was just going with the flow of the game, I wasn't thinking too much or hesitating and just playing."

UP NEXT
The Jags continue Sun Belt play against Georgia Southern at the Mitchell Center. Opening tip is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. on Sunday.

Troy Whitewashes Georgia Southern
TROY, Alabama – Troy arguably played its most complete game of the season in an 88-47 win over Georgia Southern to open Sun Belt Conference play on Friday in Trojan Arena.

The 47 points allowed were the fewest allowed by a Troy team since South Alabama managed only 41 on Jan. 26, 2011, it was also the largest margin of victory (41) in a Sun Belt Conference game in school history. The Trojans held Georgia Southern to just 22.9 percent (16-of-70) from the field in the game, while the Trojans shot 39.2 percent (31-79).

Troy (6-6, 1-0 Sun Belt) opened with a bang as Harriet Winchester hit back-to-back 3-pointers for the team's first points of the game, they were two of Troy's 11 treys on the night. A pedestrian first quarter gave way to a wide open final three periods. The Trojans opened the second on a 6-0 run and blocked five shots in the frame and finished with eight in the contest.

Amber Rivers scored a game-high 20 points, her second 20-point performance of the season and fourth consecutive game in double figures. Four of the Trojan's starting five finished in double digits including Kayla Robinson, who turned in 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting.

The Eagles (3-9, 0-1) were just 2-of-15 from the field in the third period allowing Troy to pull away and lead by as many 43 points in the second half.

QUOTABLE
"It certainly feels good to start 1-0 and I can see us getting better on some specific things we've been working on, so that feels good as well," Troy head coach Chanda Rigby said. "We've been shooting a lot in practice and it really paid off today."

UP NEXT
Troy hosts Georgia State on Sunday at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and over the airwaves on WTBF 94.7 FM and online at TroyTrojans.com.

NOTEWORTHY
• Troy made 10-plus three-pointers for the second time this season. The Trojans hit 12 at Ole Miss on Nov. 21.

• Chanda Rigby's teams have scored 80-plus points 80 times in her six years, something Troy did just seven times in the previous four seasons.

• The Trojans have now won 11 straight in the all-time series against Georgia Southern.

Bradshaw Scores Career-High in A-State's SBC Opener
JONESBORO, Ark. (12/29/17) – Senior forward Lauren Bradshaw collected her fifth career double-double and scored a career-high 24 points to help lead the Arkansas State women’s basketball team to a 76-62 win over Louisiana-Monroe in its Sun Belt Conference opener Friday night at First National Bank Arena.

The Red Wolves improved to 5-1 at home this season while running their overall record to 6-6. They claimed their 11th consecutive win over ULM, which fell to 3-10 overall and 0-1 in league play.

Bradshaw joined two other A-State players scoring in double figures, including junior guard Akasha Westbrook with 17 points and sophomore forward Tahlon Hopkins with a season-high 10. Bradshaw was also responsible for a game-high 11 rebounds, giving her five career double-doubles and helping A-State to a 45-32 advantage on the boards.

A-State, which matched its second highest scoring output of the season, shot 38.9 percent from the field. Although ULM was able to post a higher field goal percentage at .453, the Warhawks took 19 fewer shots and committed 23 turnovers to A-State’s 15. The Red Wolves also made 16-of-21 free throws, while Louisiana-Monroe was just 7-of-14 at the charity stripe.

How It Happened (First Half):

While A-State raced out to 15-4 advantage six minutes into the game, ULM closed the first quarter on 9-0 run to pull within two points at 15-13. The Warhawks were able to take their first lead of the game at 18-16 early in the second quarter and still led 26-25 with three minutes before the break, but the Red Wolves went on an 8-1 run to take a 33-27 halftime advantage.

How It Happend (Second Half):

Hopkins scored all of her 10 points in the third quarter, fueling a 10-minute stretch by the Red Wolves that saw them outscore ULM 24-17 to take a 57-44 lead into the fourth. A-State’s lead swelled to as much as 18 points (53-35) with 3:15 left in the third quarter. The Warhawks were unable to get closer than 11 points in the fourth.

Notables:

A-State won its Sun Belt Conference opener for the sixth consecutive season, while also improving to 16-11 all-time in such games.

The Red Wolves now stand 11-2 in SBC openers played at home.

Arkansas State collected its 11th win over ULM in its last 12 matchups, running its all-time record versus the Warhawks to 27-14.

A-State improved to 5-0 this season when at least three players score in double digits. Since 2012-13, the Red Wolves stand 69-26 in outings where it has three or more players score at least 10 points.

Including tonight’s game, Arkansas State is 6-0 when scoring at least 60 points.

Lauren Bradshaw scored a career-high 24 points. She reached double figures for the third time this season and 11th time of her career. The senior made a career-high 10 free throws to help her reach her record-scoring night.

Lauren Bradshaw also posted her second double-double of the season, and both have come over the last two games. She now has five career double-doubles.

Akasha Westbrook scored in double figures for the fifth consecutive game and ninth time this season. Her 17 points were only one shy of her season-high 18 posted against UT Martin. She narrowly missed here second career double-double with eight rebounds as well.

Tahlon Hopkins scored a season-high 10 points (all in the third quarter), but reached double digits for the 15th time of her career. She also hauled in a season-high six rebounds

A-State’s 76 points matched its second most this season for the third time.

The Red Wolves’ bench outscored the opponent’s reserves for the eighth time this season.

Quoting Coach Brian Boyer:

“Fortunately things started going our way in the third quarter and we were able to start making some shots and got a little bit of separation from them. Lauren was great tonight and played strong and did a phenomenal on the boards. We were really pleased and happy to see Tahlon have a good game. She has had a tough go of it and it just seemed like the ball would not go in for her, but she stuck with it and kept playing hard and hopefully this will help her get going.”

“The biggest thing is that we got the win at home. This is a long 18-game schedule and you can’t win the league with the first game but you can certainly put yourself behind with a loss at home and it just feels good to get that first one out of the way.”

Up Next:

Arkansas State remains at home for its next game, hosting Louisiana on Sunday, Dec. 31, at 1:00 p.m.

Trojans Blow Out Cajuns in Sun Belt Opener
LITTLE ROCK – Little Rock women's basketball led for all but 22 seconds as it cruised to a 78-43 victory in its Sun Belt Conference opener against Louisiana on Friday night at the Jack Stephens Center.

The 35-point margin of victory was Little Rock's largest ever in a Sun Belt opener. The Trojans' victory was the 19th consecutive home conference win and improved Little Rock's record to 38-1 in Sun Belt games at the Jack since the 2013-14 season.

Raeyana DeGray posted a career-high 17 points with five rebounds and two assists as she went 7-for-14 from the field. Monique Townson tallied a season-high 17 points with seven assists and a career-high eight rebounds. Ronjanae DeGray came up a basket shy of her career high as she put up 16 points with five rebounds while shooting 7-for-9.

Malachi Williams was the only Louisiana player in double figures as she finished the game with 11 points, three assists and two rebounds.

Little Rock (4-8, 1-0 Sun Belt) ended the first quarter with a 21-9 lead over Louisiana (5-8, 0-1 Sun Belt) as it went 10-for-16 (62.5%) during the period. Ronjanae DeGray led the quarter with six points as she went 3-for-3 from the field. The Cajuns committed eight turnovers in the quarter while the Trojans committed just two. Little Rock took advantage by scoring eight points off turnovers and 12 points in the paint.

The Trojans' lead continued to build in the second quarter as it ended the half with a 23-point advantage at 40-17. Little Rock outscored Louisiana 19-8 in the period after two six-point runs and a five-point run. The Trojans scored 14 of their 19 points in the paint as Raeyana DeGray led the quarter with seven points and four rebounds.

The Cajuns put up their best fight in the third quarter as they shot a game-high 50 percent (7-for-14). However, the Trojans also put up their best percentage of the game at 70 percent (7-for-10) while nailing all six of their foul shots. Little Rock upped its lead to 32 points at 59-27 as Tori Lasker capped off the Trojans' seven-point run with a three. The Cajuns ended the quarter down 62-34 after a 7-3 run.

The Trojans took their largest lead of the game in the fourth quarter as they went up by 37 at 73-36 with an 8-0 run — their largest run of the night. Little Rock outscored Louisiana 16-9 in the final quarter of play while shooting 42.9 percent (6-for-14).

Lasker ended the game with a career-high six assists while tallying three points and two rebounds. Yanina Inkina had eight points and three rebounds, and Kira Shepard had five points, two rebounds and two assists. Terrion Moore, Keanna Keys and Anna Hurlburt each put up four points.

Little Rock ended the game shooting 52.5 percent (31-for-59) — its second-best of the season.

The Trojans will continue Sun Belt Conference action on Sunday as it hosts ULM at 2 p.m., at the Jack Stephens Center.

Coastal Downs UTA in Conference Opener
CONWAY - The Coastal Carolina women's basketball team opened its Sun Belt Conference schedule with an 89-76 victory over UTA Friday afternoon at the HTC Center.

The 89 points marks the second-highest offensive output for Coastal (7-5, 1-0) this season (following the 93 points against Allen), and highest against a Division I opponent.

Four different Chants scored in double figures to spur the offensive explosion. Jas Adams scored 22 points -- her fourth game of the season scoring 20 or more -- to lead the charge. Breelyn Blanding followed close behind with 21, a career high for the junior guard.

DJ Williams scored 17 points, and nearly had a triple-double as the sophomore guard grabbed nine rebounds and dished out nine assists -- a career high. Naheria Hamilton joined Williams with 17 points and nine rebounds to tie for the game high on the boards.

Coastal shot 54 percent from the field, including making five of 10 shots from beyond the arc. The Chants also finished 30-of-52 at the line, both season highs for the team.

UTA (6-6, 0-1) was limited to shooting 36 percent from the field, and received 19 and 16 points from Crystal Allen and Daiane Machado, respectively. Shelby Richards added 11 points.

Coastal won the battle on the boards, 46-40, and outscored UTA in the paint 36-26. The Chants also converted 24 points off of 14 UTA turnovers.

A 6-2 CCU run to close the first quarter gave the Chants a 19-17 lead after 10 minutes of play. Coastal added to its lead over the second quarter after scoring seven unanswered points twice during the frame. The first span was accomplished solely by Hamilton, who made three layups and a free throw. Hamilton started the second stretch with another layup, and Blanding finished the stretch with her own layup and a 3-pointer.

UTA kept the game close during the third quarter as it shot 50 percent from the field, its best shooting of the game. The Mavs outscored the Chants by three in period, giving Coastal a single-point lead heading into the fourth.

Coastal relied on its free throw shooting in the fourth quarter as UTA got into foul trouble down the stretch. The Chants shot 19-of-35 at the line in the final 10 minutes, including 10 of their final 12 points over the last three minutes. CCU opened the final quarter scoring nine unanswered points to take its first double-digit lead of the game.

The Chants return to the HTC Center on Sunday to host Texas State at 1 p.m.

Bobcats Use Big Fourth Quarter to Top Mountaineers, 69-54
BOONE, N.C. – The Texas State women's basketball team (8-4, 1-0 SBC) opened Sun Belt Conference on a high note, defeating Appalachian State (2-10, 0-1 SBC), 69-54, on Friday evening inside the Holmes Convocation Center, marking the first Sun Belt Conference clash of the 2017-18 campaign.

"I thought our girls responded well coming off of the bump in the road that was the Hatter Classic," said head coach Zenarae Antoine. "It started in practice, I really liked what I saw from the team in our practice time. It is nice to start out conference play with a victory. None of these games will be easy, and today was no different."

Texas State opened up an early 23-17 lead after the first quarter. The Mountaineers clawed back into the game in the second quarter, outscoring the visiting Bobcats by four in the frame. TXST led 41-39 at the half. Both teams cooled off offensively in the third quarter, only adding nine points to the scoreboard.

With the score set at 50-48 heading into the final stanza, the Bobcat offense ramped up the pressure. Texas State opened the final quarter on a 15-1 scoring run to blow the game wide open. Over the last 10 minutes of play, the Bobcats outmatched the Mountaineers by a score of 19-6, claiming a 15-point victory in the SBC opener.

The Bobcats were led by senior guard Taeler Deer, who poured in 29 points. She eclipsed the 20-point barrier for just the second time this season, the last coming in the season-opening victory over Texas Tech. Following that game, she was named College Sports Madness Mid-Major Player of Week for her 44-point outing. Deer connected on 11-of-12 shots to start the game, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Deer also led TXST with four dimes and tied for the lead with three steals.

Junior guard Toshua Leavitt was the only other Bobcat to reach double figures. After struggling to get clean looks through the first 30 minutes, her offensive game came alive in the fourth. She netted seven of the team's 15 points during the extended run to start the fourth quarter. In total, Leavitt tallied 11 points.

For the Mountaineers, sophomore center Bayley Plummer led the charge. She posted an efficient double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Plummer converted 5-of-7 shot attempts. The Bobcat defense forced Plummer into five turnovers. Appalachian State struggled keeping control of the ball all night as the Texas State defense flustered the home team into 20 total turnovers. Tierra Wilson tallied 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting from deep.

The coaching staff emphasized rebounding in the days leading up to the game. Appalachian State held the clear size advantage, but the scrappy post play of the Bobcats limited the damage on the glass. For the game, the Mountaineers outrebounded the Bobcats, but only by two total rebounds. Brooke Holle led TXST on the glass, pulling down eight boards on the night.

Texas State was off from deep, only hitting 4-of-20 shots from behind the 3-point line. The team came into the game knocking down a conference best 9.9 3-pointers. To make up for the lack of production from deep, the Bobcats ran in transition, outpacing the Mountaineers 11-0 on the break.

Sun Belt basketball continues on Dec. 31 as Texas State takes on Coastal Carolina in Conway, S.C. Tip from the HTC Center is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. EDT.

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