UTC Women Beat Western Carolina For 51st Straight SoCon Victory
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Four players scored in double figures as the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team claimed its third Southern Conference win, defeating Western Carolina 77-59 at the McKenzie Arena.
Chattanooga improved to 12-5 overall and 3-0 in league play while the Catamounts fall to 4-13 on the year and 0-3 against the conference.
“I thought we did a pretty good job of dictating the tempo,” Chattanooga head coach Jim Foster said. “We had good ball movement and a lot of people contributing and scoring points.
“We’re starting to take advantage of some of the attributes this group possesses. We have a bunch of players who can score on the block and we’re getting those opportunities. They’re taking good care of the ball. It’s a good defensive group, very interchangeable.”
Junior Queen Alford led all scorers, matching her career-high with 20 points and added five rebounds. She was 7-of-11 from the field with a 3-pointer and was 5-of-5 from the free throw line. Jasmine Joyner just missed out on a triple double with 13 points, nine rebounds and a record eight blocked shots. She was 5-of-9 and added four assists in her 27 minutes on the floor.
“[Queen Alford] has a lot of skills. In the past, she played the game at one speed,” Foster said. “She’d learned how to change speeds and she’s learned how to diversify her game.”
Senior Alicia Payne scored a career-high 16 points, including a buzzer beater from just inside the line as the shot clock expired in the third quarter. She was 5-of-7 from the field with a 3-pointer and perfect from the free throw line, making all five attempts.
Sophomore Keiana Gilbert was the fourth Chattanooga player in double figures, making 8-of-12 for 17 points with four rebounds.
The Mocs got off to a quick start, outscoring the Catamounts 7-3 over the first 3:57 of the game. Western Carolina cut the lead to two points on a layup from Sherae Bonner less than a minute later, but that’s the closest it would be the rest of the way.
Sophomore Aryanna Gilbert hit a layup to spark a 16-5 run that was capped off by a pair of free throws from Alford to make it 37-23 with 2:19 to play in the second quarter. Chattanooga used a 15-4 run bookended by shots from Keiana Gilbert in the third quarter to get out front 60-37 with 50 seconds to play in the frame.
The Mocs never let up, pushing its lead to as much as 27 points, 71-44, at the 4:45 mark in the fourth quarter. Chattanooga shot a season-high 52.6 percent from the field making 30-of-57 and were 15-of-19 from the free throw line, matching the most UTC has made this season.
Chattanooga dished out a season-high 19 assists with a school-record 12 blocked shots. Joyner’s eight rejections ties the school record she set last year at Notre Dame and is the most by a UTC player at the Roundhouse.
The win was the Mocs’ 51st consecutive Southern Conference victory and 11th straight against Western Carolina. UTC now leads the series 68-11 dating back to 1979.
The Catamounts were led in scoring by Ace Easter who had 13 points, six rebounds and three assists. She was 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, playing 34 minutes. Lindsay Simpson, also in double figures, was 2-of-5 from long range with 10 points. Erika Joseph and Angel Allen each pulled in a team-high seven boards. Western Carolina was 23-of-65 (35.4%) from the field with six 3-pointers and was 7-of-10 from the free throw line.
The Mocs outscored WCU 50-32 in the paint and scored 15 second chance points off 14 offensive rebounds. Western Carolina got 20 bench points compared to the Mocs three and edged UTC 17-15 on points off turnovers.
Chattanooga will return to action Saturday with a 2 p.m. matchup against UNCG at the McKenzie Arena in the first game of a doubleheader with the men who will host rival East Tennessee State.
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