Lady Wildcats Bounce Back after First Defeat
By: FVSU Office of Sports Information
After Tuesday’s disappointing loss to the Thorobrettes of Kentucky State University, the previously unbeaten Lady Wildcats of Fort Valley State University (FVSU) continued their road swing tonight with a visit to Jackson, Tennessee to meet the Lady Dragons of Lane College. While Tuesday’s defeat halted the FVSU win streak at 15 and was the team’s first conference loss in its last 35 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) games, the Lady Wildcats were looking to re-group against a Lady Dragon team that they defeated 65-36 in early January on the FVSU campus.
Played in Jackson’s Oman Arena, the SIAC match up started quickly for the Lady Wildcats. After scoring the game’s first four points, FVSU led 14-7 with 12:39 remaining in the first half. At 11:26 left, the Lady Dragons cut the deficit to three points, 14-11.
At the 9:26 mark, Bianca Thornton (back in her first game since the Christmas Break) converted a lay up in transition to extend the FVSU lead to 18-14. Again on transition, the Lady Wildcats got a lay up with 7:25 left; this time by Yasheeka Jones. The FVSU lead was 22-18.
At 5:07 left, a second chance basket by KeyErra Rozier made it 26-20 in favor of the Lady Wildcats. On the ensuing play, Takesha Riggs stole a Lady Dragons cross-court pass and took the ball the length of the floor for an FVSU basket; extending the lead to 26-20.
At 3:52 left, Thornton hit a three-point shot and FVSU led 31-20. The following play, the Lady Wildcats got another steal from Riggs. In transition, Brandi Haynes made the lay up on the offensive end for a 33-20 FVSU lead.
At 1:22 left, after a Lady Wildcats rebound, Patience Figgins found Jasmine Birdsong alone down court for an easy lay up. That was followed by a defensive stop by FVSU and another three-point basket by Thornton to make the score 38-24. Thornton closed the first half from the free throw line by converting two shots and giving FVSU a 40-24 halftime lead.
In the game’s first 20 minutes, the Lady Wildcats shot a scorching 54.5% from the field (18 of 33). As a team, the Lady Dragons converted six of 29 shots (20.7%) in the first half.
In the second half, it took 2:35 before a basket by either team. At 17:25 remaining, Tamara Andrews got the first basket to give FVSU a 42-24 lead.
At 16:33 left, Kim Burgess got a Lady Wildcat fast break started with a blocked shot. Jones collected the stray basketball, tossed it up the floor to Takesha Riggs who finished the fast break with a lay up. FVSU led 45-26.
At 13:55 left, FVSU built on their lead after Riggs converted a field goal. That was followed by a steal by Thornton who made the entry pass to KaDiedra Freeland who scored on the lay up making the score 52-31.
With 5:27 on the clock, the FVSU lead had been cut to 14, 58-44. At 4:30 left, the lead was down to 60-48. However, that would be as close as the Lady Dragons would get. The Lady Wildcats came away with the win, 67-50.
The Lady Wildcats were led in scoring by point guard Yasheeka Jones who finished with 15 points, five rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Takesha Riggs and the returning Bianca Thornton had 11 points each while KaDiedra Freeland had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The conference win takes the Lady Wildcat record to 16-1 overall and 11-1 in SIAC play. With the six game road trip finally over for the Lady Wildcats, they return to the confines of the HPE Arena on the FVSU campus for an eight-game home stand beginning on Tuesday, January 26th when they host the Lady Bears of Miles College. Tip off for the conference match up is at 6 p.m. with men’s action to follow. Admission to both games is free of charge.
To view the box score for this game and for other information on Lady Wildcats Basketball visit, www.fvsusports.com.
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