ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Fifth-year senior Jade Compton totaled 23 points and nine rebounds to lead the Presbyterian College women's basketball team to the 69-54 Big South win over UNC Asheville on Saturday afternoon at Kimmel Arena. Maleia Bracone added 15 points, while Tionna Carter chipped in with 13 points and six rebounds in the victory.
FINAL SCORE: Presbyterian 69, UNC Asheville 54
LOCATION: Kimmel Arena (Asheville, N.C.)
RECORDS: Presbyterian (8-8, 3-3) | UNC Asheville (7-11, 2-5)
Coach Sharp's Thoughts
" Proud of our toughness on the road today. It was great to see us take better care of the ball, especially in the second half. It's nice to have multiple people in double figures and our team continues to improve each game out."
Scoring the Game
- PC got the opening basket of the game before a 7-0 burst from the hosts gave them the 7-2 edge early on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Hose answered the Bulldogs run with a burst of their own on a 10-2 run to push the lead out to 12-9 in the opening stanza. In that stretch, the Blue Hose got points from four different players in a balanced first quarter. PC and Asheville traded free throws late to make it 14-10 after one for the Blue Hose.
- The second quarter started with both teams trading baskets in the opening four minutes ultimately giving the Blue Hose a 21-19 edge with 6:10 to play in the half. PC pushed the lead out to six at 27-21 before a late layup from the hosts made it 27-23 at intermission.
- Following a back and forth start in the second half, the Blue Hose started to push the issue scoring with Carter, Bracone, and Compton all carrying the team on a 15-9 thru the middle portion of the third and giving PC the 43-38 edge. PC pushed the lead out to 11 at one point in the final minutes of the third before a quick spurt from the hosts made it 51-43 heading to the fourth quarter.
- The Bulldogs pushed the deficit to eight twice in the early going of the fourth quarter but both times were answered by the Blue Hose as PC led by 11, 59-48 with 5:13 to go. The hosts used a 6-0 spurt to cut it all the way down to five with 2:33 left but the Blue Hose once again had an answer closing on a 10-0 run to finish off the 69-54 victory on Saturday afternoon.
Players of the Game
- Jade Compton led all scorers with 23 points and pulled down a team-high nine rebounds for the Blue Hose. Maleia Bracone added 15 points which included four threes, while Tionna Carter had 13 points and six rebounds in the victory. Freshman A'Nyah Barker had a career-high five assists to lead PC. Kai Carter led Asheville with 20 points with Nadiria Evans adding 13 points for the Bulldogs. Jordaynia Ivie had a team-high six rebounds, while Jamia Blake dished out a team-high five helpers.
Stats of the Game
- Presbyterian shot 41.8% (23-of-55) and held the Bulldogs to 31.7% (20-of-63) in the victory. PC made seven threes and limited the hosts to five from beyond the arc. Presbyterian made 16-of-21 at the foul line, while Asheville connected on just 9-of-16 free throws. PC held the advantage on the glass at 44-35. Both teams recorded seven steals. UNC Asheville dished out 14 assists compared to 12 for the Blue Hose. PC had a 16-9 edge in second-chance points and also outscored Asheville in the paint on Saturday by the count of 24-12.
Notables
- Compton recorded her fifth 20-point game of the season and 10th of her Blue Hose career on Saturday with her 23 points and nine rebounds. She's averaging 24.6 ppg in the five contests she's eclipsed 20 points in this season
- With her 23 points on Saturday, Compton moved to 10th in the Blue Hose DI scoring record book with 743 over her time with Presbyterian.
- Sophomore Maleia Bracone tied a career-high with her four made three-pointers a mark that Bracone has hit twice during the 2021-22 season against St. Thomas and Vanderbilt.
- Freshman A'Nyah Barker dished out a career-high five assists to go along with a career-high six rebounds in 20 minutes of action for the Blue Hose off of the bench.
- Freshman Jo Raflo totaled a career-high four rebounds.
- Tionna Carter totaled 13 points and six rebounds in the victory. Carter's 13 points is one off of her season-high set against Radford last weekend.
- Carter moved to seventh in the Blue Hose DI career record book for free throws made with now 161 in her career.
- PC scored 42 points in the second half marking the second time in league play and fourth time this season that the Blue Hose has totaled 40+ in the second half of a game this season.
- The Blue Hose moved to 8-1 on the year when scoring 60+ points. PC is also 7-3 when outrebounding its opponents.
Up Next
- The Blue Hose return home on Wednesday, January 26th for a 6 p.m. tip against Campbell from the Templeton Center on ESPN3.
