Once the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball Mocs figured out where their big advantage was against Presbyterian on Saturday, they figured out a way to exploit it.
The Mocs pounded the interior for easy baskets and their defense frustrated the Blue Hose throughout in gaining their first win of the season, 71-51 in front of 2,780 at McKenzie Arena.
UTC (1-3) is back on the road Monday, with a game at Indiana at 7 p.m.
Lakelyn Bouldin scored a career-high 21 points, going 4-for-7 from 3-point range. Aryanna Gilbert added 16 points and four steals, while Arianne Whitaker had eight points, six rebounds and three assists. The Mocs had 18 assists, with 11 coming from the trio of Gilbert, her sister Keiana and Whitaker as the team found success going high-low and taking advantage of its superior size.
Bouldin entered the game averaging 8.7 points and shooting 30 percent from 3-point range.
"My teammates, they found me," Bouldin said. "I hadn't been playing well, so this was a step in the right direction. I think as far as the game goes, we use these games to work on stuff we need to work on, like guards rebounding because we need to get more aggressive on the boards and help the posts out."
Point guard Molly Melton - who played all 40 minutes in the most extensive action of her career - matched Whitaker's six rebounds. And Keiana Gilbert blocked four shots.
The Mocs dominated the interior, outscoring Presbyterian 34-18 in points in the paint and 10-4 on second-chance points. But they also were solid shooting from outside, making 7 of 16 3-point attempts.
"As the game went on, we realized we needed to look for the high-low," Aryanna Gilbert said. "Whenever they went man (defense), coaches told me I had a mismatch and to get to the block."
The UTC defense frustrated Blue Hose guard Cortney Storey, who entered the game averaging 22.3 points but was held to 14, eight of which came in the final period with the outcome no longer in doubt. Presbyterian (1-3) was led by Janie Miles, who was 5-for-9 on 3s and totaled 17 points.
The Mocs never trailed Saturday, with a basket by Whitaker on the game's second possession. They led 17-11 after a quarter and built a double-digit lead by halftime, one that wouldn't get closer than 36-29 after an 11-2 run by the Blue Hose in the third quarter. The Mocs responded with an 8-1 run, led 47-33 after three quarters and weren't threatened again.
"We played better," UTC coach Jim Foster said. "That's important. We played harder, tougher, shared the ball and made the extra pass often. That gave us quality shots; we hadn't had that.
"The players are understanding that we don't play bad teams. Everybody we play is a good team and there are some very, very good teams, and we have to grow from that."