Georgia Southern women's basketball held visiting Akron to just eight first-half points in notching a 60-36 victory in MAC/SBC Challenge action on Saturday from the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center.
The Eagles (11-14) notched a second straight win due to the defensive effort, while Akron (9-15) saw its slide reach seven games with the loss. It was the first meeting between the two teams on either team's campus.
Georgia Southern outpointed the Zips by an 18-2 margin in the first period, which included four three-pointers from the Eagles. Akron notched its first basket with 5:52 left in the first quarter and then did not score again until 7:01 left in the second, a scoreless stretch of seven minutes and nine seconds.
The Eagles took a 31-8 lead into the break, which marked the first time Georgia Southern has held another NCAA Division I opponent to single digits in a half in program history.
Akron cut the Eagles' advantage to 16 points, 36-20, midway through the third period, but Georgia Southern opened the fourth quarter on a 10-0 run to push the margin back out to 27 and cruise to the victory.
The 36 points allowed by the Eagles were the fewest against a DI opponent since a 35-34 win over the College of Charleston on January 18, 2012.
Nicole Gwynn led the Eagles on the day with 18 points, while Indya Green grabbed 13 rebounds. Shelbee Brown led Akron with 19 points as the rest of the Zips team scored 17 combined.
Eagle of the Game
Gwynn hit a season-best 5-of-10 from three-point range en route to her 18 points. She notched three rebounds and added two assists and two steals on the day as well, rebounding from her uncharacteristic zero-point performance on Wednesday at Southern Miss.
Stat of the Game
Georgia Southern went 10-of-24 from three-point range, setting a new season-high in threes and also shooting for the best percentage (41.7%) of the year with a minimum of 20 attempts.
Quotables
Head coach Hana Haden on the effort against the Zips
"It was a great team effort by our group today. Akron came out and really packed the paint on us, and we're a team that typically likes to play inside-out. Shooting was big, Nicole was 5-for-10 from three, which was a huge part of our success in being able to score and spread the ball around. They challenged us to make outside shots and we did."
Next Up
Georgia Southern returns to Sun Belt play on Wednesday, February 12, hosting Coastal Carolina in a 6 p.m. contest at the Hill.
