BELMONT – Juniors Jonissa Monley and Jasmine Huntley along with sophomore Eboné Stevens drained double-digit points as the visiting UNC Pembroke women's basketball team shot 46.3 percent from the field en route to defeating the Belmont Abbey Crusaders, 72-51, on Thursday afternoon inside the Wheeling Center.

The Braves (5-5) used the victory to snap a two-game losing streak and take the 5-4 series advantage over Belmont Abbey (4-6) who suffered its third loss in the month of December. 

Monley finished her 24 minutes with a game-high 20 points as she was 9-for-14 from the field and a rebound shy of a double-double as she pulled down nine boards. Following Monley in the points column was Stevens with 14 as she knocked down four of UNCP's seven treys. Huntley also chipped in 10 points and Chandrica Fuller posted eight points as both shot 80.0 percent from the field.

On the defensive side of the ball, Crystal Hicks grabbed seven rebounds and led the team with four steals as the Braves out-rebounded the Crusaders by five and forced Belmont Abbey to commit 18 turnovers. UNCP collected 20 second-chance points off its 13 offensive rebounds and logged an additional 20 points off Belmont Abbey's mistakes. The Braves also tallied 32 points off the bench and 42 points in the paint compared to a mere five points off the bench for the Crusaders and 14 inside the paint.

In the opening period, UNCP bolted out to a quick eight-point lead with less than three minutes elapsed, but the Crusaders cut down UNCP's advantage to one point at the 5:55 mark, however the Braves closed out the period on a 17-4 run. Belmont Abbey proceeded to out-score the Black and Gold in the second quarter, 15-11, but trailed 38-28 at the half as both teams shot more than 45.0 percent from the field in the first half.

Another strong offensive showing in the third quarter extended UNCP's lead as the defense held the Crusaders to a mere nine points and denied any chance of a comeback in the fourth quarter for the 21-point victory. The Black and Gold shot 46.9 percent in the final 20 minutes and held the Crusaders to a 32.1 shooting percentage in the same time frame.

The Braves controlled the lead for more than 39 minutes and never trailed Belmont Abbey in the contest. 

The Crusaders were led by Alex Busch with 19 points, while Gabrielle Bethel had the game's only double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Briana Grier totaled 10 assists in the contest as the team shot 38.9 percent from the field. 

UNCP will be back in action in the New Year against Peach Belt Conference rival Augusta (9-2, 2-0 PBC) on Saturday in the opening contest of the doubleheader with tipoff set for 1:30 p.m. inside the Christenberry Fieldhouse in Augusta, Ga.