NEWBERRY - The Newberry College women's basketball team shined in their home opener by defeating the Lander Bearcats Saturday night, 83-48.
Helen McKinney (Owensboro, Ky.) had her second consecutive double-double Saturday night with a game high of 13 rebounds along with 19 points and seven assists. Monica Alexander (Norcross, Ga.) tied McKinney for the assists lead with seven and also racked up 18 points and eight rebounds. Laura Marquardt (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) tied her career high for points in a game with a team high 22 points.
The leading scorer for the Bearcats was Ciara Lyons (Augusta, Ga.) with 13 points. She shot 5-10 from the field and sank three out of her four free throw attempts. Mukia Myrick (Columbus, Ga.) also played well with 11 points and a team high five rebounds.
The scarlet and gray started the game off right with a 10-2 run. The scoring did not stop there as Newberry would gain a 22-8 lead with 11 minutes remaining in the half. Just then, the fast paced style of Lander kicked in as the Bearcats crept their way back into the game. During the final 11 minutes of the half, Lander outscored Newberry 22-10. Despite the shift in momentum, Newberry led going into halftime, 32-30.
Newberry shot the ball well in the second half but their mental mistakes kept Lander in the game. They shot 50% from the field and 42.9% from beyond the arc. However, they only shot 45% from the foul line and committed 11 turnovers. Lander did not shoot as well as Newberry, but still shot a respectable 37.9% from the field.
McKinney shot lights out in the first half, nailing 4-6 from the field and scoring a team high 11 points. Lyons was Lander's leading scorer in the first half with 12 points.
The second half was highly entertaining for the home fans as Newberry dominated the period. NC came out and slowly built an 11 point lead with 12 minutes remaining in the game. After that the Bearcats fell apart and the scarlet and gray finished them off. During the final 12 minutes of the game, Newberry earned more points than either team had in the first half. They scored 35 points to Lander's 11 and finished the game with a 35 point advantage.
The statistics speak for themselves in the second half. Newberry shot an astounding 18-30 from the floor, 7-10 from three-point range, and 8-10 from the foul line. They also cut their turnovers down to six in the period. Lander on the other hand shot 13% from the field and only made three field goals.
Marquardt turned it on in the final half with a team high 17 points on 6-7 shooting. TaSheba Butler (Florence, S.C.) scored a team high six points for the Bearcats in the second half. She shot 0-4 from the floor and earned all six points from the foul line.
The win puts the Newberry College women's basketball team at 4-2 on the season. They will continue their home stand this Wednesday, December 3 against Augusta State at 6 p.m. Lander (3-2 overall) will return home on December 15 to take on Georgia Southwestern at 5:30 p.m.
