Ashlen Dewart-led UTC Mocs win 13th in row

photo Ashlen Dewart
Arkansas-Oklahoma State Live Blog

STATESBORO, Ga. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball team built a lead with a strong finish to the first half Monday night at Georgia Southern's Hanner Fieldhouse.

The Lady Mocs put another Southern Conference win away with a strong final 10 minutes of the second half, beating the Eagles 67-50.

Ashlen Dewart had her third straight double-double (sixth of the season) and ninth game with at least 20 points, finishing with 24 points and 13 rebounds.

The win extended the Lady Mocs' streak to 13 games, their longest since the 2009-10 season when they won 13 straight before capturing the Southern Conference regular-season and tournament titles. UTC (23-3, 16-1) hasn't won either title since but has a one-game lead on Davidson in the loss column with three games left on the Lady Mocs' schedule.

UTC wraps up its home slate with games Saturday against Western Carolina and Monday against Davidson. The Lady Mocs can clinch a 12th regular-season title in 14 years with two wins.

Georgia Southern (5-20, 4-12) hung with the Lady Mocs for 15 minutes in the first half. Anna Claire Knight tied the game at 24 with 5:01 left in the half, but the Eagles didn't score again until after the break.

UTC closed the first half on a 10-0 run for a 34-24 lead.

The Eagles didn't go away after halftime.

A Knight layup cut UTC's lead to 39-33 with 14:03 to play. UTC answered with a Dewart three-point play, two Kayla Christopher free throws and a Ka'Vonne Towns steal that led to a Dewart layup and a 46-33 advantage with 12:54 remaining.

UTC backup point guard Alicia Payne, who came in averaging 0.7 point per game, went 3-for-4 from the field and scored eight points. The Lady Mocs outscored GSU 25-4 on points off turnovers and 23-4 on second-chance points.

Upcoming Events