Late Run Dooms Cougars, Fall to Mocs, 73-63

Saturday, January 26

Chattanooga, TN

5:00 PM

College of Charleston

Chattanooga

1/26/2008 5:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

By: CofCSports.com

Chattanooga used an 11-2 run late in the second half to help seal a 73-63 win over the College of Charleston women's basketball team in action tonight in front of 1823 fans at McKenzie Arena.

Charleston fell to 9-9 overall and 5-3 in the Southern Conference. Chattanooga improved to 17-3 and 9-0 in the league.

Leading 57-52 with 6:22 to play in regulation, Chattanooga used an 11-2 run over the next 3:44 to take a 14-point 68-54 lead with 2:38 to play. After withstanding a late Cougar rally, the Lady Mocs then closed out the 73-63 victory.

It was a very different game for much of the first half, however, as the College of Charleston led most of the way after taking an 11-8 lead at the 13:38 mark and extending that to 17-13 with 9:35 to play. Chattanooga would stay within four points over the next 4:35 until a basket by Deidra Jones pushed the Cougar advantage to 25-19 with 5:04 remaining in the half.

At that point, the Lady Mocs offense came to life with a 7-0 run to take a 26-25 lead on a 3-pointer from senior guard Amy Mohr who started her first career game. The Cougars would take the lead back on the very next possession on a three-pointer from sophomore guard Ericka Williams to go up 28-26. A 6-2 run to close out the half, keyed by a pair of layups by LaCondra Mason, gave the Lady Mocs a 32-30 advantage heading into the break.

It continued to be a tight affair in the second half as Chattanooga maintained its lead, but never by more than four points until Hollinquest connected on two free throws to make the score 47-41 with 11:21 to play in the half. The Cougars battled back, drawing to within three points twice, before back-to-back layups by Hollinquest extended the Lady Mocs lead to 53-46 with 9:34 to play. The teams then alternated baskets until it was 57-52 and strong defense and solid foul shooting keyed Chattanooga's 11-2 run.

Nikki Williams led the Cougars with a team-high 14 points while Jill Furstenburg contributed 13 points and six rebounds. Jones and Tonia Gerty rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 and 10 points, respectively, while Ashley Scott contributed a solid all-around game with six points, four rebounds and a game-high five assists.

For the Lady Mocs, Alex Anderson led the way with a game-high 21 points to go along with 13 rebounds for her sixth double-double of the season and Shanara Hollinquest posted her second double-double of the season with 18 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. LaCondra Mason chipped in a career-best 12 points while Jenaya Wade-Fray added 10 points.

The Lady Mocs return to action on Monday, January 28 when they host Georgia Southern in a 7 p.m. contest at The McKenzie Arena. The Cougars will travel to Western Carolina Monday night in a 5 p.m. contest.