Coastal Carolina women's basketball notched a 67-56 Sun Belt Conference victory over host Georgia Southern on Wednesday evening at the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center, halting the Eagles' two-game win streak.
The Chanticleers (18-6, 8-5 SBC) ran its own current win streak to five with the win, while Georgia Southern falls to 11-15 overall and 3-10 in the league. The two teams will meet again in just six days in Conway, on February 19.
Coastal Carolina opened the contest on a 15-5 run, eventually leading by nine, 25-16, at the break. But the Eagles clamped down defensively, holding the Chanticleers to just 3-of-16 from the field in the second quarter to cut the deficit to two, 34-32, at the break.
The Chanticleers held the Eagles at arm's length in the second half, eventually pulling away by holding Georgia Southern without a field goal for a five minute and 40 second stretch in the fourth quarter for the final 11-point margin. Coastal Carolina forced 24 turnovers on the night, and held a 19-7 edge in points off of turnovers for the game.
Nicole Gwynn was the only Eagle to reach double figures, scoring 24 points, while Alancia Ramsey's 28 points led Coastal Carolina on the night.
Eagle of the Game
Gwynn went 5-for-10 from three-point range for a second consecutive game en route to her season-high 24 points. She has now reached double figures in a team-high 19 games, including three games of 20+ points.
Stat of the Game
Coastal Carolina was a perfect 18-for-18 from the free throw line. It's tied for the second best free throw shooting performance in a Sun Belt women's basketball game behind FIU's 20-for-20 performance vs. South Alabama on February 25, 2012.
Quotables
Head coach Hana Haden on the keys to the game against the Chanticleers
"It was a tough loss at home for us. We had three categories that we were really keyed in on: offensive rebounds, not allowing them second chance opportunities; we wanted to hold them to 30 percent from three and we wanted to stay under 16 turnovers. We held them to 18 percent from three and only six offensive rebounds, which is about as good as anyone has guarded them all year. But 24 turnovers, that's 24 times we don't get the opportunity to shoot it, and that just hampered us."
Next Up
The Eagles host Old Dominion on Saturday, February 15, in a 1 p.m. Sun Belt Conference contest at the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center.
