FLORENCE, S.C. – Using 63.1 percent shooting from the field in the second half, the visiting UNC Pembroke women's basketball team claimed 30 points in the paint to fight past Peach Belt Conference East Division rival Francis Marion, 55-50, on Wednesday evening inside the Smith University Center.

The Braves (5-9, 3-4 PBC) grabbed their third win the in the month of January and fourth outing in the last five, while Francis Marion (6-10, 3-4) moved to 3-3 in the New Year.

Senior Jazmine Kemp posted the team's only double-double of the game with 10 points and 12 rebounds, while sophomore Airico Williams led the Braves with 11 points on a trio of three-pointers and senior Kierra Haney added 10 points as she 5-for-9 from the field.

UNCP finished the contest shooting 43.1 percent from the field after going 14-for-22 (63.6 percent) in the second stanza and notching a perfect effort from the charity stripe, while the Patriots went 31.0 percent from the floor. The Braves also out-rebounded Francis Marion, 38-30, despite suffering 22 turnovers compared to the Patriots' 14.

In the opening 15 minutes, the contest saw two tied scores and the Patriots led by five points, but the Braves utilized a 6-1 run to level the game for the third time at 20-20 with 1:17 remaining until halftime. Newcomer Eboné Stevens capped off the scoring with a trey on the assist from Williams to send the teams into the locker rooms.

Francis Marion clinched the fourth tied score to open the second half, but UNCP held onto the slim lead throughout the next 10 minutes until the Patriots used two field goals to hold a four-point advantage. The final and eighth tied score on a field goal by Kemp put the score at 41-41 and UNCP stretched its lead in the remaining five minutes to seven on Haney's last effort layup. Francis Marion knocked down a layup with 12 seconds to suffer the loss as the Braves picked up the five-point road win.

Stephanie Brown led the Patriots with 14 points, while Cy'erra Mills tallied 10 points in the effort. 

The Black and Gold will close out its three-game road stand with a Saturday doubleheader against PBC opponent North Georgia (12-4, 4-3) with tipoff set for 1:30 p.m. inside Memorial Hall.