AIKEN, S.C. - The University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team defeated Anderson, 63-59, Wednesday night at the Convocation Center.

The win moved the Pacers record to 9-0 on the year, which is good for the best start in program history. 

The victory was the closest of the year for USC Aiken (9-0, 2-0 PBC) as the game had six lead changes and four ties. Anderson (7-4) held a 28-22 lead at the half and led by two with just under 12 minutes to go in the second half before the Pacers were able to take the lead for good.

The Trojans did not go away, as they cut the lead to one with just under two minutes to go, but a three pointer by Daniela Tarailo with 1:32 remaining would gave USC Aiken enough breathing room to secure the victory. 

Tarailo (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point HS) led the Pacers with a game-high 21 points, hitting four 3-pointers and going a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Tarailo was one of three Pacers in double figures with Kayla Harris and Mia Antoine scoring 14 and 12, respectively.

Harris (Raleigh, N.C./Wakefield HS), the reigning two-time Peach Belt Conference Player of the Week, added five boards, three assists and two steals to go with the 14 points. 

Antoine (Stone Mountain, Ga./Dominion Christian HS) had three assists and three rebounds on 6-for-9 shooting for her 12 points.

Mackenzie Reese (Madison, Wis./Edgewood HS) contributed nine points, three rebounds and two assists from the bench. Brittany Hill (Mechanicsville, Va./Quinnipiac) scored seven points with three rebounds, six assists and five steals to stuff the stat sheet. 

Anderson finished the game shooting 50 percent (23-of-46) from the field, while the Pacers shot 42 percent (21-for-50). USC Aiken held the edge from the charity stripe, shooting 84.2 percent (16-for-19) to Anderson's 70 percent (7-for-10).

The win extended USC Aiken's school-record regular-season home winning streak to 24 games.

The Pacers are next in action on Jan. 3 on the road against Peach Belt foe Georgia Southwestern. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m.