RALEIGH, N.C. – Forward Keyona Bryant (So./Springdale, Md.) scored 12 points and led a 9-1 run in final minutes to give Saint Augustine's College a 62-54 CIAA women's basketball victory over crosstown rival Shaw University on Saturday (Feb. 13) before a packed house in Emery Gymnasium.
With the victory, the Lady Falcons (15-9 overall, 11-6 CIAA, 5-2 Western Division) stayed one game in second place behind division leader Fayetteville State University. The Lady Falcons travel to Chowan University on Monday before hosting Fayetteville State in a key Western Division contest on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Bryant played strong down the stretch against the Lady Bears (14-9, 9-8 CIAA, 3-4 Western Division) to keep the Lady Falcons in the hunt for a division title. With the score tied at 53-53, the Lady Bears hit a free throw for a one-point lead. Bryant answered with a three-point play on a putback gave the Lady Falcons a 56-54 lead with 1:34 left. After a Shaw turnover, Bryant scored on another putback for a 58-54 lead with 39 seconds left.
Byrant, the Lady Falcons leading scorer, added six rebounds off the bench. LeKiesha White (Jr./Richmond, Va.), Eliezer Iceson (Sr./Harlem, NY) and Scharlawn Hubbard (Fr./Akron, Ohio) added nine points apiece. Allison Sikes (Jr./Richmond, Va.) played an excellent all-around game for the Lady Falcons with eight points, 14 rebounds, five assists and four steals.
A balanced scoring attack by the Lady Falcons offset a tremendous performance by Tanisha McGaughey, who led the Lady Bears with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Niesha Searles and Quaticqua Johnson both added nine points for the Lady Bears.
The Lady Falcons used their defense and depth to ultimately win a nailbiter against their crosstown rival. They scored 22 points off 19 Shaw turnovers and outscored the Lady Bears 23-15 in bench points.
The Lady Falcons had 18 turnovers but the Lady Bears failed to take advantage, scoring only four points off them.
The Lady Falcons led 37-33 at halftime but the Lady Bears opened the second half with a 14-5 run to take a 47-42 lead with about 12 minutes left. White hit two free throws to put the Lady Falcons back ahead at 53-51 with 3:20 remaining.
Iceson scored eight points in a tight first half befitting of a crosstown rivalry. The Lady Falcons raced out to a 7-0 lead, but the Lady Falcons regrouped to take a 13-12 lead almost midway in the half. The contest was close the rest of the half, which ended with Sikes draining a jumper right before the horn sounded for a 37-33 Lady Falcon lead at the break.
Sikes added six points, four rebounds four assists and three steals in the opening 20 minutes, and Hubbard added six points for the Lady Falcons, who shot 42 percent from the floor in the first half. McGaughey of the Lady Bears led all scorers with nine points while Victoria Tanner and Johnson both chipped in six points. The Lady Bears made 38 percent of their shots including 4 of 9 three-pointers to stay close.
