PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke women's basketball team led by as many as 16 in the fourth quarter before icing the game at three free-throw line by knocking down six freebies in the final 34 seconds to hold off a charging Augusta 61-59 on Wednesday night in Peach Belt Conference (PBC) action at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.  

GAME INFORMATION
Score: UNC Pembroke 61, Augusta 59
Records: UNC Pembroke (4-7, 2-5 PBC); Augusta (3-8, 1-6 PBC)
Location: Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court
Series: Augusta leads 34-18

HOW IT HAPPENED
Box Score/Play-by-Play

FIRST QUARTER
-A low-scoring opening frame saw each side score just 12 points on a combined 10-for-21 shooting from the floor, while UNCP missed its first four shots and Augusta was 1-for-8 to start the game.
-Both the Braves and Jaguars led by three at one point in the first quarter, as the guests used a 3-pointer on their first possession to grab a 3-0 lead and UNCP went up three on an Alecia Hardy jumper with 3:41 on the clock.

SECOND QUARTER
-The offense was just marginally better for both teams in the second period, as the teams played to a 13-13 tie and went to the locker rooms knotted at 25-25.
-The Jaguars used a 5-1 run to begin the quarter to take a 17-13 lead, but the Black & Gold scored 12 of the next 15 points to go up 25-20 with 3:58 to play.
-Augusta closed with the final five points and held the Braves scoreless for nearly four minutes at the end of the quarter.

THIRD QUARTER
-The largest scoring margin of the game came in the third quarter, as the Braves outscored Augusta 16-10 in the third frame.
-UNCP scored the first six points coming out of the break, including four from Avery Locklear, and maintained that advantage for the final 8:15 of the stanza to lead 41-35 with 10 minutes to play.

FOURTH QUARTER
-Both teams found their shooting stroke in the fourth and combined for 44 points, which surpassed the next-highest scoring quarter by 18 points.
-The Black & Gold came out blazing to begin the period and used a 10-0 run to stake claim to a 16-point lead at 51-35 with 7:48 to play.
-Augusta refused to quit and hit on seven of its next 12 shots, while holding the Braves scoreless for 5:23 on 0-for-9 shooting to claw back within three at 55-52 with 46 ticks on the clock.
-Locklear, Ebone Stevens and Tee Graham combined for five free throws from the 34-second mark to the 12-second mark to stretch the UNCP lead back to six at 60-54.
-Augusta's Ashleigh Outler connected on a pair of freebies with 11 seconds left to draw the guests to within four and after a UNCP turnover, Jahmia Bradley buried one of her four 3-pointers to trim the hosts' lead to just one at 60-59 with seven seconds to play.
-Graham went 1-for-2 at the charity stripe and the Jaguars were unable to advance the ball and get a shot off before the buzzer to secure the 61-59 UNCP triumph.

NOTABLES
-The victory moves the Braves into sole possession of eighth in the PBC standings through seven of the 22 league contests.
-Nyla Allen dropped a career-high 23 points in 28 minutes on 10-of-20 shooting and also grabbed eight rebounds. The senior has now scored in double figures in seven-straight outings and leads the squad with 13.0 points per game. She also set career highs in field goals made, field goals attempted and steals (5) on Wednesday.
-Locklear chipped in 12 points and match a career high with six boards, while Brandi Robinson added 10 points and eight rebounds.
-UNCP turned 18 offensive rebounds into 18 second-chance points, while Augusta scored just five second-chance points on 16 offensive boards.
-The Braves committed a season-low six turnovers and won the battle in the paint 26-16. Wednesday was just the third time in the last five seasons that the Black & Gold has committed six turnovers or less in a game.
-The victory was the 275th in the coaching career of John Haskins, with 170 of those wins coming at the helm of the Lady Braves.

UP NEXT
The Braves hit the road for three-straight games away from Pembroke, beginning with a Saturday trip to Columbus State. Tipoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. on the front end of a women's-men's doubleheader at the Frank G. Lumpkin Center in west Georgia. The Cougars (7-4, 5-2 PBC) are currently tied for fourth in the PBC race and have won two-straight overall, including a 70-62 defeat of Georgia Southwestern on Wednesday. Columbus State knocked off UNCP by a 99-79 score in Pembroke on Dec. 17 of this season.