Box Score AIKEN, S.C. – In a battle of the two top teams in the Peach Belt Conference East Division, Augusta State upset the nationally 21st-ranked University of South Carolina Aiken women's basketball team, 66-60, on Wednesday evening at the Convocation Center.
The loss by USC Aiken (19-6, 12-6 PBC) allows Augusta State (20-5, 13-5 PBC) to claim a narrow one-game lead over the Pacers in the Peach Belt Conference East Division with one game remaining in the regular-season. Both teams have claimed one victory in the two-game regular-season series.
The now regionally fifth-ranked Pacers led by as many as nine in the first half before entering the halftime break with a narrow 31-30 advantage.
In a game that featured 11 ties and 15 lead changes, Augusta State outscored the Pacers, 36-29, in the second half.
The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Pacers in the all-time series with its rival.
USC Aiken closed out the loss to Augusta State shooting 34 percent (18-for-53) as a team. The Pacers connected on 35.7 percent (5-for-14) of their 3-point attempts as a team.
The Pacers were lethal from the free throw line in the game, shooting 86.4 percent (19-for-22).
Augusta State shot 45.6 percent (26-for-57) in its upset win over the Pacers. The Jaguars hit 36.4 percent (4-for-11) of their 3-point attempts as a team. Augusta shot just 62.5 percent (10-for-16) at the free throw line in the game.
Three Pacers finished in double figures in the contest with Daniela Tarailo (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point HS) leading the way with 16 points. She knocked down three 3-pointers in the contest. The three treys in the game allowed her to surpass 200 3-pointers in her career. She now has 201.
In addition to her 16 points, Tarailo also had five rebounds, three assists and one steal. She was 3-for-3 at the free throw line.
Mackenzie Reese (Madison, Wis./Edgewood HS) was just behind Tarailo with 13 points. She also acquired seven rebounds, three steals and one assist.
The final Pacer in double figures, Porsha Martin (Douglasville, Ga./South Paulding HS) closed out the Pacer loss with 10 points and four rebounds.
Augusta State was led by Jemimah Ashby's 20 points in the game.
USC Aiken will close out its 2012-13 regular-season with a road league game against UNC Pembroke on Saturday, March 2. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
