AIKEN, S.C. – The USCA women's basketball team outscored Georgia Southwestern by eight in the fourth quarter to pick up the 67-60 victory Wednesday evening.
The Pacers are now 6-12 on the year, including 3-7 in PBC play.
Head coach
Brittany Batts' squad was paced by
Mahkayla Premo's career-high 23 points and eight rebounds.
Mackenna Nix added 12 points while
Morgan McDermott netted 10.
Ioanna Stefanaki had eight points while
Monique Emelifeonwu totaled seven points, 11 rebounds, five blocks and four assists.
Zenia Palaska totaled six points and three steals while
Nika Kurdija had one and a pair of assists.
Down 6-0, Nix canned a three-point bucket and hit a jumper. Trailing 7-5, Premo connected on a jumper. Nix hit two charity tosses for a two-point cushion. Up 15-12, Premo netted three free throws en route to an 18-14 edge at the end of the first quarter.
Holding a 22-21 lead, Kurdija hit a free throw before finding Emelifeonwu for a basket. With the score at 27-26 in favor of the visitors, Emelifeonwu made two free throws. McDermott connected on a jumper and made a free throw for a 31-27 lead at the break.
Down 43-38 in the third frame, Nix drilled a three-point bucket. Premo's shot from downtown gave the home team a 44-43 lead, but two free throws by the visitors made it 45-44 entering the final stanza.
Tied at 52-52, Stefanaki buried a three-ball off a pass from McDermott. With 4:40 to go, Stefanaki found McDermott for a lay-up. Tied at 57-57, Emelifeonwu hit two free throws and Palaska made one for a 60-57 margin. The Hurricanes made it 62-60 with 50 seconds to go, but Batts' team hit its free throws down the stretch for the 67-60 win.
For the game, USCA hit 19-of-51 from the floor, including seven-of-17 from downtown. The team hit 22-of-37 from the charity stripe and held a 42-39 edge on the glass. USCA dished out 14 assists and recorded 37 points off the bench.
The Pacers return to action Saturday when they play at USC Beaufort at 1:30 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.
