FLORENCE, S.C. – Francis Marion converted on 26 of their 34 free throw attempts on the night and outscored the UNC Pembroke women's basketball team by six points in both the second and fourth quarters on the way to a 66-55 win over the Braves on Wednesday in the Smith University Center.
It was the fifth loss in the last six outings for the Braves (11-16, 6-13 PBC) who have come away empty-handed on their last five trips to Florence, S.C. The win highlighted Senior Night for the Patriots (13-12, 9-10) who improved to 9-3 at home with the triumph as well.
| THE BASICS |
SCORE: Francis Marion 66, UNC Pembroke 55
RECORDS: UNC Pembroke 11-16, 6-13 PBC, Francis Marion 13-12, 9-10 PBC
LOCATION: Florence, S.C. (Smith University Center) |
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| HOW IT HAPPENED |
| 1ST QUARTER |
| Cold shooting plagued both teams in the opening period, as UNCP converted on just 3 of their 13 field goal attempts and Francis Marion showed a 25 percent success rate from the field. Francis Marion, however, would take a one-point lead, 11-10, into the second quarter. |
| 2ND QUARTER |
| Deja McCain's 3-pointer just 27 seconds into the second period gave the Braves their only lead of the night. Tatyana McClaney's jumper midway through the stanza sparked the Patriots on a mild 7-0 scoring spurt that would give them the lead for good. |
| 3RD QUARTER |
| Francis Marion pushed its lead out to nine points on back-to-back 3-pointers in the early goings of the third quarter, but eight-straight points by the Black & Gold made it a one-possession game again two minutes later. A free throw from Zaria Woods with eight seconds remaining marked the final points of the quarter and gave the hosts a 49-44 edge heading to the final period. |
| 4TH QUARTER |
| The Patriots extended their lead out to double digits, 54-44, on two free throws from Kiana Adderton with 6:14 left to play. UNCP whittled away at its deficit and cut it down to just seven points, 60-53, following a layup from Alcenia Purnell at the 1:39 mark, but the Braves came up empty on their next two possessions and the Patriots logged six free throws down the stretch to seal the outcome. |
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| INSIDE THE BOX SCORE |
+ Alcenia Purnell led the Braves in scoring with 12 points, while also adding five assists.
+ Aliyah Farmer, Deja McCain and Courtney Smith each added nine points. Farmer logged three steals, while Lester pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. |
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| NOTABLES |
+ The home team has now captured the last four meetings in the series.
+ Francis Marion has now captured the last five series matchups in Florence, S.C. The Braves are just 2-11 in the Smith University Center since the midway point of the 2007-08 season.
+ Wednesday's loss mathematically eliminated the Braves from contention for a berth in next week's Peach Belt Conference Tournament. |
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| UP NEXT |
| The Braves will close out their 2019-20 season on Sunday when they welcome Georgia Southwestern (10-15, 6-13 PBC) to Pembroke for Senior Day. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. |
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| STAY CONNECTED |
| Follow UNCP Women's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" UNCP Women's Basketball on Facebook. |
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| JOIN THE BRAVES CLUB |
| Fans can help support the UNC Pembroke Women's Basketball program by joining the Braves Club. To find out more information about the Braves Club, visit UNCPBraves.com/BravesClub or email braves.club@uncp.edu. |
