Box Score AIKEN, S.C.--Senior forward
Lana Mandic scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed a career-tying 12 rebounds as USC Aiken (9-2) held off a determined West Virginia Tech (0-3) squad 63-48 in women's non-conference basketball action on Friday night at "The Courthouse". It was the seventh-straight win for the Lady Pacers.
USC Aiken improved to 27-2 in non-conference home games over the past five seasons and have won both all-time meetings with the Lady Golden Bears.
West Virginia Tech shot a sizzling 57.9 percent in the opening stanza, but turned the ball over 14 times as USC Aiken claimed a 37-25 halftime advantage. Senior guard
Kasey Mills' putback bucket at 7:49 gave the Lady Pacers its first double-digit lead 23-13. Mills scored 10 of her 12 points in the opening 12 minutes of the game. She also swiped a game-high six of the team's 13 steals.
Eboni Speller drained a 17-footer from near the top of the key to extend the margin to 37-23 with 1:15 left in the half.
After a 15-of-33 shooting performance in the first half, USC Aiken opened the second half a frigid 1-of-13 (7.7 percent). The Lady Golden Bears crept within striking distance at 41-35 on one of two free throws by Sarah Caserta with 12:07 remaining. But a
Nola Grant jumper sparked a 13-5 run which she then capped with a three-point play with 7:43 to play to give USCA its largest lead of the game 56-40.
Grant scored all eight of her points in the second half. The junior from Aiken, S.C. grabbed six rebounds and dished out a career-best five assists.
Following the sluggish start to the second half, USC Aiken connected on 10 of its final 19 attempts from the field for 52.6 percent. West Virginia Tech managed just a 7-of-27 effort in the final frame for 25.9 percent.
Benazura Serbecic posted her second double double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Katie Gebhardt tossed in six points, six rebounds, five assists, and a career-best five steals in 33 minutes. USC Aiken out rebounded West Virginia Tech 47-29.
Taria Jordan was the lone Lady Golden Bear in double figures with 23 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Takisha Basham added nine points and nine boards.
USC Aiken will travel to Greenville, S.C. tomorrow morning for a 12:30 PM showdown at Division I Furman University (3-1). The Lady Pacers are 1-1 all-time versus the Lady Paladins but have lost 10-straight games to Division I foes dating back to a 64-56 win at Coastal Carolina during the 1990-91 season. Furman is coming off an impressive 76-59 win at Clemson on Tuesday night.
Newspaper Box Score
West Virginia Tech vs USC Aiken
12/03/04 7:00 p.m. at Aiken, S.C. (The Courthouse)
USC AIKEN 63, WEST VIRGINIA TECH 48
WEST VIRGINIA TECH (0-3)
Jordan, Taria 9-16 3-5 23; Caserta, Sarah 2-11 5-10 9; Basham, Takisha 4-9 1-2 9; Cowan, Renita 2-5 0-0 4; Clark, Amanda 1-1 1-2 3; Nelson, Tameka 0-4 0-0 0; Boney, Kimina 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-46 10-19 48.
USC AIKEN (9-2)
Mandic, Lana 8-20 3-3 19; Mills, Kasey 5-11 0-0 12; Serbecic, Benazura 5-12 1-3 11; Grant, Nola 3-11 2-5 8; Gebhardt, Katie 2-5 2-3 6; Szabo, Beata 2-3 0-1 5; Speller, Eboni 1-2 0-0 2; Allee, Mindy 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-65 8-15 63.
West Virginia Tech............ 25 23 - 48
USC Aiken......................... 37 26 - 63
3-point goals-West Virginia Tech 2-3 (Jordan, Taria 2-3), USC Aiken 3-10 (Mills, Kasey 2-5; Szabo, Beata 1-1; Gebhardt, Katie 0-3; Mandic, Lana 0-1). Fouled out--West Virginia Tech-None, USC Aiken-None. Rebounds-West Virginia Tech 29 (Basham, Takisha 9), USC Aiken 47 (Mandic, Lana 12). Assists-West Virginia Tech 12 (Cowan, Renita 5; Caserta, Sarah 5), USC Aiken 22 (Gebhardt, Katie 5; Grant, Nola 5). Total fouls-West Virginia Tech 13, USC Aiken 17. A-310.
