Lady Braves smother Erskine in win
Jan. 24—DUE WEST, S.C. — The UNC Pembroke women's basketball team shot a season-best 48.9 percent from the field and scored 22 points in the paint to highlight a 54-26 victory over Erskine on Monday at Belk Arena.
The Braves (13-7, 9-2 CC) have now won 13 out of their last 15 contest and have held three out of their last four opponents to under 30 percent shooting. The Flying Fleet (4-11, 2-9 CC) have now lost their last four contests and fall to 1-5 when playing on their home court.
UNC Pembroke started the game on an 18-0 run that stretched to the 1:52 mark after a jumper from Zaria Clark. Erskine was limited to just 1-for-10 shooting from the field and scored its only bucket with 55 seconds on the clock. Kalaya Hall extended the UNCP lead out to 20-3 with a layup to end the period.
A 9-3 Flying Fleet run cut the hosts deficit back to 28-16 with 2:08 remaining in the half. Both teams shot 33.3% from the field, but the Braves held a 28-18 lead as the teams headed into the locker rooms.
UNC Pembroke extended its lead out to 37-19 after a 9-1 run capped off with a layup from Zaria Clark with 6:36 left in the quarter. The Braves defense did not allow the Flying Fleet to score a basket, with the hosts five points coming from the free throw line during the frame. Malea Garrison's jumper in the paint pushed the Black & Gold lead out to 40-23 heading into the final stanza.
Erskine's Mariah Corry knocked down a trey to whittle its deficit back to 45-26, but that would be the only basket the Flying Fleet would score. UNCP shot 50% from the field and closed out the game on a 9-0 scoring run.
Zaria Clark logged a game-high 16 points on 8-for-12 shooting. Clark tallied six rebounds, three assists, one block and a steal in 29 minutes of work.
Kalaya Hall finished the contest with 15 points highlighted by a 3-for-6 clip from the perimeter.
Lillian Flantos pulled down a game-best eight rebounds, while Malea Garrison came off of the bench and grabbed six boards. Aniah McManus finished the outing with six assists.
UNC Pembroke shot 48.9 percent from the field during the contests. Monday's stellar shooting performance marked a season-high for the Braves.
The Black & Gold limited Erskine to just single-digit scoring in three of the four quarters.
It was the fourth time this season the Flying Fleet have been held to under 20-percent shooting from the field during a contest. Erskine shot 14.9 percent during Monday's loss, which marked the second-lowest shooting percentage on the season.
UNCP's defense forced Erskine to take 34 of their 47 field goal attempts from the 3-point line.
The Braves will return action at home on Wednesday when they welcome Mount Olive (10-10, 6-6 CC) to Pembroke for Military Appreciation Night. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
