TIGERVILLE, S.C. --- North Greenville University held Tusculum College to 28 percent shooting as the Crusaders defeated the Pioneers 62-55 in non-conference women's basketball action Thursday night at Hayes Gymnasium.
Briana Mann had 10 points and 10 rebounds while Karen Donehew added 13 points, nine rebounds and three blocks for the Crusaders (3-5), who committed 24 turnovers but never trailed in snapping an eight-game losing streak to the Pioneers dating to 2001.
Tara Shields scored a game-high 16 points for the Pioneers (1-6), who trailed by 14 points in the third quarter but pulled within four late in the fourth quarter before the Crusaders put the game away at the foul line.
Benedicta Makakala also reached double figures for the Pioneers with 12 points to go along with seven rebounds and three steals, but Tusculum finished the game 18-for-64 (28.1 percent) from the field and 5-for-18 from three-point range as a team.
Elizabeth Trentham also finished in double figures for the Crusaders with 10 points along with eight rebounds, as North Greenville had a 51-39 advantage on the boards over Tusculum. The Pioneers had 15 offensive rebounds, but were held scoreless on second-chance points by the Crusader defense.
The only tie of the game came on a jumper by Makakala that answered an opening basket by the Crusaders' Cameron Carter, as North Greenville scored nine straight points to go ahead 11-2 midway through the first quarter. A Shields three-pointer snapped the Crusader run, and the Pioneers moved within four on a layup by Kahliya Murry with 39 seconds left in the quarter. However, a three-pointer from Carter extended the North Greenville lead to 17-10 at the end of the opening period.
The Crusaders took their first double-digit lead at 21-10 on a jumper by Mann with 8:27 left in the second quarter, and the margin stayed above seven points until Jasmine Williams hit a free throw with 2:58 remaining to pull the Pioneers within 27-21.
The Crusaders led 31-23 at halftime as Mann scored a team-high eight points, with Carter adding seven and Trentham six. North Greenville shot 39.3 percent (11-for-28) from the field in the half and outrebounded Tusculum by a 22-20 margin. Shields paced the Pioneers with eight points in the half, with four points apiece from Makakala, Murry and Sydney Wilson. The Pioneers shot 24.1 percent (7-for-29) from the field and committed 11 turnovers in the opening half.
In the third quarter, North Greenville took its largest lead at 37-23 with 7:00 left on the second of back-to-back three-pointers by Jessica Garlington. Tusculum quickly climbed back within eight at 37-29 following consecutive threes from Maelyn Head and Shields, and closed the gap to seven at 48-41 on a bucket by Makakala just before the end of the third quarter.
Tusculum's defense sparked a fourth-quarter rally for the Pioneers, holding the Crusaders to four missed field goals and three turnovers in the first 3 1/2 minutes of the quarter. Two free throws by Head pulled the Pioneers within 50-46 with 6:41 left, but Alicia Jones sank a three-pointer with 5:51 left to restore the Crusaders' seven-point lead.
A basket by Makakala brought Tusculum to within 56-51 with 1:40 left, but a missed three-pointer from the Pioneers was answered by two free throws from Ayano Shelton with 46 seconds left to extend the Crusader lead to 58-51, and the Pioneers would get no closer.
Murry, who entered the game among the SAC leaders in blocked shots at 2.8 per game, had a pair of blocks and connected on both of her field-goal attempts to finish with four points off the bench for the Pioneers. Jasmine Williams played a season-high 23 minutes for Tusculum and had a season-high seven rebounds and two steals while matching her season best with a pair of blocked shots.
Head had nine points and four rebounds for the Pioneers, while Wilson had four points and three rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench in her second appearance of the season. Garlington went 3-for-7 from three-point range and finished with nine points in 10 minutes for the Crusaders, while Shelton had seven points, seven rebounds and a pair of assists.
North Greenville had the advantage in bench scoring over Tusculum by a 22-15 margin. North Greenville finished the game with 24 turnovers, which Tusculum was able to convert into 22 points. The Pioneers had 19 turnovers as a team, which the Crusaders turned into 19 points.
Tusculum will look to snap its five-game losing streak when it returns to South Atlantic Conference action on Wednesday, Dec. 16 at Lenoir-Rhyne, with game time at 6 p.m.
