College of Charleston
George Mason
CofC W. Basketball Outdone by George Mason
11/23/2014 10:24:00 PM | Women's Basketball
FAIRFAX, Va. – The College of Charleston women's basketball team fell to George Mason, 71-61, in a Sunday afternoon matinee at the Patriots Center.
CofC (0-4) was a much-improved team offensively after halftime, but was unable to overcome GMU's hot second-half shooting. The Patriots shot 59 percent from the floor and poured in six three pointers in the second half to control the game.
CofC Seniors Erin Hall and Christy Hewatt led the Cougars in points with 15 and 13, respectively, with Hewatt adding a game-high 15 boards to complement her double-double. Jacqueline Luna-Castro and Mikaela Hopkins also found their way into double digits with 10 points apiece.
The Cougars won the battle beneath the basket, outrebounding the Patriots (50-40) and creating a 20-10 second-chance point advantage.
For Mason, senior Sandra Ngoie and junior Taylor Brown scored 19 points apiece to lead all scorers. 15 of Ngoie's 19 were via the three-ball.
Both teams were strong defensively in the first half, creating 24 combined turnovers while neither team eclipsed nine field goals in the opening period.
After the teams alternated makes and misses in the early going, Hopkins knocked down a pair of free throws to force the game's fifth tie at 12-12 with 11 minutes left in the period.
The Patriots opened a six-point lead over the next five minutes, but a Hopkins layup and Luna-Castro three-pointer cut the lead back to one point with five minutes left.
Down the stretch, however, the Cougars shot just 2-of-9 from the field, sending the teams into the locker room with GMU leading 27-21. At the break, Luna-Castro led the game with nine points while Hewatt pulled down a game-high seven boards in the first half.
Facing foul trouble, Luna-Castro's impact was limited in the second half and GMU opened the period by knocking down their first five field goal attempts –three of which were from behind the arc – to stretch their lead to 16 around the 14-minute mark.
After the midway point of the second half, the Cougars stormed back by making 5-of-6 field goal attempts to cut into the lead, but the Patriots continued to rely on the three ball, converting six knock-downs (6-of-10) from behind the arc in the second half alone, to keep the Cougars at arm's distance.
Hall found her shooting form in the second half, and her long-range jumper swished through the net to cap off a 7-0 Cougar run and cut the lead back to single digits late in the game, but GMU free-throws at the other end prevented the Cougars from getting within striking distance.
All of Hall's 15 points came in the second half, and she finished the game 3-of-7 from behind the arc.
Big challenges remain on the Cougars' horizon as they head to the Gulf Coast Showcase which they'll open against defending National Champion UConn on Friday, Nov. 28 in Estero, Fla. The game's primetime tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
