Cougars Survive Eagles, 54-53

Saturday, December 16

Statesboro, GA

5:00 PM

College of Charleston

Georgia Southern

12/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

By: CofCSports.com

The College of Charleston survived a furious rally by the Eagles in the final seconds of the game and held on for the 54-53 win over Georgia Southern in women's basketball action in front of 567 fans this afternoon at Hanner Fieldhouse in Statesboro, Ga.

The Cougars snap a two game skid and improve to 3-5 overall and 1-0 in the Southern Conference, marking the fifth year in a row Charleston has opened 1-0 in the league. The win also marks the first for the Cougars in Statesboro, Ga. Until this game the Cougars were 0-13. Georgia Southern falls to 5-6 overall and 0-1 in the SoCon after winning its last four games.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half as the Cougars and Eagles applied strong defensive efforts up and down the court. There were very few uncontested shots as the Cougars shot only 26.3 percent from the field and the Eagles shot just 21.4. Keeping Georgia Southern in the game was a 16-for-20 nod from behind the charity stripe. A total of 27 fouls were called in the first half as Charleston went 10-for-15 from the free throw line.

Shooting improved somewhat in the second half for both teams as the Cougars shot 38.5 percent and the Eagles shot 33.3. For the game Charleston shot 31.3 percent, while Georgia Southern shot 27.9.

The Cougars built a seven point lead early in the second half, capped off by a three-pointer by Jill Furstenburg at the 17:21 mark. It was the first three-pointer of the game for either team, going 0-11 combined in the first half, and the first for Furstenburg, all of whose 10 points came in the final 20 minutes. Georgia Southern fought back and kept the gap within five the rest of the game and even took the 48-47 lead with 4:44 left. Jade Hughes hit her only three-pointer of the night at the 3:26 mark to give the Cougars what would be the lead for good at 50-48. The Eagles tied the game at 50-all off a Tiffany Brown jumper at 3:04.

A free throw by Hughes and a clutch three-pointer by Furstenburg gave Charleston a 54-50 lead with 1:18 left before a huge three-pointer by Carolyn Whitney cut the margin to one with 43 seconds left. Georgia Southern forced several key turnovers down the stretch, giving the Eagles five more chances to take the lead. Stingy Charleston defense would prevail, giving the Cougars the one-point 54-53 win at the end.

Erika Smith, who scored 10 of her 14 points in the first half, led the Cougars offensively. With her team-leading 12 rebounds, she notched her third career-double-double and second of the season. Hughes followed with 11 points and Furstenburg, playing in her first contest since the second game of the season, scored 10. Leading Georgia Southern was Carolyn Whitney with her 14 points. Shawnda Atwood and Chequilla Jessie both had eight rebounds to page the Eagles.

Charleston went 11-for-18 from the line for the game for 61.1 percent, while Georgia Southern went 18-for-22 from the line for 81.8 percent. The Eagles, who had averaged 6 three-pointers a game, were just one-for 12 from behind the arc. Charleston was three-for-11.

Charleston next hosts Lander Dec. 18th at 7:00 p.m. The Eagles travel to Troy Dec. 21st for a 7:00 p.m. contest.