Alternate video of David's game-winner, courtesy of Nick Herman of the Laurens County Advertiser
CLEMSON, S.C. – Dria David (Lawrenceville, Ga.) sunk a
buzzer-beating three-pointer to lift the Presbyterian College women's
basketball team over Clemson in its season opener on Sunday afternoon at Littlejohn
Coliseum, 49-46.
David scored a career-high 19 points for PC (1-0) as the Blue
Hose never trailed to the Tigers (0-1).
PC built a nine-point lead with 6:44 left in the game before
Clemson tied the game with 12 seconds remaining. After a PC timeout, Sherece
Smith (Clemson, S.C.) brought the ball up the floor and found David thanks to a perfect screen by Mariah Pietrowski (Elizabethton, Tenn.). With an open
look, David hit the game-winner as the horn sounded to give PC its first-ever win
over an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent in the program's 12th
try.
Pietrowski nearly reached a double-double with 10 points and
nine rebounds. Shonda Burnside (Gray Court, S.C.) turned in an impressive performance
with six points, six rebounds, one block and a game-high four assists.
Clemson's Jonquel Jones scored 10 points and hauled in 13
rebounds while Danaejah Grant scored a team-leading 14 points.
PC overcame a 15-for-52 (28.8 percent) shooting performance
by holding Clemson to a 31.0 percent afternoon and forcing 19 Tiger turnovers.
The Blue Hose saw a 21-17 lead at halftime erased early in
the second period, but David hit the game's first trey to restore the lead. PC
clung to a narrow advantage, always staying ahead by at
least two before Karlee Taylor (Asheville, N.C.) knocked down a three-pointer to put the visitors ahead by nine.
From there, Clemson strung together six straight points on
scores from Nikki Dixon and Jones to pull Clemson within three at the 3:46
mark.
PC kept an advantage until Grant scored her 11th
point of the half with 12 seconds remaining on a layup to bring the teams even, setting up David's heroics.
The Blue Hose turned in a solid opening half to the season, never
trailing en route to a 21-17 lead at halftime. PC held the Tigers to 6-for-26
shooting at a 23.1 percent clip while also cashing in on offense, scoring 13 first
half points off of 11 Clemson turnovers.
Down the stretch, PC held the Tigers scoreless for 7:15 and
without a field goal for 10:04 until a basket with 1:05 remaining in the
half.
David scored the first four points of the game and six of the
team's first eight before Burnside tallied four points on two slick spin moves
in the post. Clemson clawed away at the PC lead thanks to four first half
points from Jonquel Jones, but PC continued to stay ahead.
The Blue Hose made it 16-13 on a clever bounce pass from
Burnside to Noelle Carter (Neptune, N.J.) under the basket and PC worked to
take an eight-point lead with 3:51 left before the break. The Tigers closed
strong, however, cutting the lead in half thanks in part to three points from
Natiece Ford as PC took a 21-17 advantage into the locker room.
Kasey Hobbie (Spring Lake, N.J.) and Keyonna Allen (Forest
Park, Ga.) saw their first collegiate action after redshirting the 2011-12
campaign. Allen pulled down a rebound while Hobbie saw 12 minutes of action.
The Blue Hose return to action on Wednesday with a trip to
No. 10 Georgia. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.
