Box Score
LYNCHBURG, VA— Liberty used a 17-2 run coming out of halftime as Winthrop lost its first Big South contest, 67-38, Saturday evening at the Vines Center.
Winthrop now falls to 6-8 overall on the year and 1-1 in the Big South. Liberty is 9-4 overall and 1-1 in the conference.
Liberty came out of the locker room hot as it connected on its first 10 shots of the half and led by 27 points. The run that opened up the game to start the second half was sparked by two threes from Devon Brown. Liberty finally missed one at the 11:17 mark as LaKendra Washington missed a jumper.
The Lady Eagles couldn't get their offense going at all in the second half and the field goal drought they ended the first half extended to the 16:45 mark on a Shanice Cole lay-in. Cole's basket was the only one in over a 20-minute span.
"It's very disappointing," said Winthrop head coach Bud Childers. "We played good physical basketball in the first 15-17 minutes of the first half. We made those mistakes at the end of the first half and they came out and hit shots in the second half and we didn't respond at all. They played really aggressive in that 7-8 minutes (opening of the second half) and we didn't answer. "
The first half was an offensive struggle for both teams until a late run in the final two minutes put Liberty up 24-16 at the break. Winthrop scored the first basket of the game on a Cole lay-up, but Liberty hit back-to-back shots by Jelena Antic and a lay-in by Avery Warley on a nice dish from Amber Mays for a 5-2 lead with 14:39 left in the half. Winthrop then used a 10-0 run for a 12-5 lead with just over 11 minutes remaining. Lacey Lyons got the run started on a triple from the left corner and that was followed by a basket inside by Sarah Scott, who then followed that with a three-pointer from straight away. Kaitlyn Rubino made it 12-5 after a basket down low on a pass inside by Jessica Fansler.
At that point, Winthrop did not manage another field goal for the rest of the half. The remaining four points of the half came at the foul line as Cole was 4-for-4. Liberty struggled as well until the 1:21 when it turned a two-point game into an eight point halftime advantage. After Cole pulled Winthrop within a point after a couple of free throws, Liberty's Brown got in the paint for an easy lay-in. Winthrop turned the ball over on its next possession and it was Brown on the finishing end again for a three-point play. Liberty caught Winthrop's defense sleeping with less than 10 seconds as Kylee Beecher ran free in the lane and Mays found her for the easy two.
The Lady Eagles only connected on 24 percent from the field in the first half while Liberty shot 39 percent. Each team turned the ball over nine times.
It was the worst road loss at the Vines Center for Winthrop since Feb. 28, 2005 season when it fell 79-26. The 67 points were also the most allowed by Winthrop this season as the highest prior to the game was 66 at North Carolina State.
Winthrop shot 32 percent from the field, had 20 turnovers and finished with a season-low six offensive rebounds. Liberty finished the game shooting 51 percent, making 21 of its final 33 shots. The Lady Flames finished with 29 points off the Lady Eagles turnovers.
Cole led Winthrop with 10 points while Scott added seven points.
Brown led Liberty in scoring with 21 points while Dymond Morgan added 11 points off the bench. Mays finished with a game-high 10 assists as Liberty totaled 22 in the game.
Winthrop will be back in action in two days when it remains in Virginia and heads over to Radford to face the Lady Highlanders on Monday at 7 p.m.
