DELAND, Fla. – Stetson women's basketball could not overcome a hot-shooting fourth quarter from the Spartans, falling 65-58 to UNC Greensboro, Thursday afternoon in the Edmunds Center.
"They're a good team, they play transition very well and we gave them too many easy baskets," head coach
Lynn Bria said. "Obviously, we have a could kids out, so the depth hurt us and having to play kids a lot more than they normally play. It was a combination of things, but I thought we scored enough points to win the game but defensively we have got to get stops and we didn't do that."
The Spartans came out on the front foot, scoring the first points of the afternoon on back-to-back layups but the Hatters answered take their first lead of the game at the 1:52 mark of the first half, 12-11 off a jumper by
Mali Morgan-Elliott. The visitors would convert a free throw for a tie at 12 after the first quarter.
The Hatter offense found rhythm again toward the end of the half, down 20-16, the Hatters made a 14-2 run over the final 6:20 of the half.
Skylar Treadwell started the run with a layup eith contributions from
Kiya Turner and
Jaelyn Talley before being capped off by a pair of free throws from
Anabel Ellison for the 30-22 halftime score.
The visitors pushed back in the third quarter as the advantage changed hands twice. UNCG went in front after a layup by Khalis Cain with 3:41 left in the segment, and in the final possession
Sydney Gouard notched a jumper to put Stetson up 42-41.
While the Hatters had a precarious one-point advantage, the visitors as they fired away ultimately building a 10-point advantage, 56-46, three minutes 20 seconds into the frame. SU chipped the advantage down to four, 60-56, with 65 seconds left, but were unable to climb back to even footing, falling 65-58.
Khamya McNeal headed a three-pronged attack with 17 points, now with 36 in the last two contests. Talley and Turner each provided 15 with the former earning a double-double with 11 rebounds, a season-high mark; the latter recorded eight, one shy of a season high. Eight Hatters recorded at least one assists, with Talley pacing the team at three.
Stetson will stay in DeLand, as teams converge for four games of the Hatter Classic. SU plays on Sunday and Monday at 11 a.m., facing Akron then Winthrop the next day. Bethune-Cookman will play twice at 1 p.m., facing those opponents in reverse order.
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS (PDF).
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