BREVARD, N.C. - The Newberry College women's basketball team controlled every facet of the game in a 73-48 win over Brevard College in Boshamer Gymnasium on Wednesday night.
Newberry (18-7, 11-4 South Atlantic Conference) was led by Anita Bulcher (Russia, Ohio), who recorded 19 points and 15 rebounds for her 18th double-double of the season. It was also Bulcher's eighth consecutive double-double, which is tied for seventh best in NCAA Division II history.
Helen McKinney (Owensboro, Ky.) scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while LeAnne Watson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) scored 11 points. Jessica Bearzatto (Melbourne, Australia) dished out a team-high eight assists and Newberry recorded assists on 22 of its 30 baskets.
Brevard (8-18, 2-13 SAC) was led by Samantha Winn (Candler, N.C.), who scored 15 points and moved into first place all-time in scoring at Brevard. Holli Flippo (Kingston Springs, Tenn.) scored 12 points and was the only other Tornado in double digits.
Brevard scored the first five points of the game and jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead with 16:40 to play in the first half. However, Newberry quickly responded with a 20-4 run over the next five minutes to take a 22-12 lead on a Bulcher basket in the paint.
The Tornados scratched back to cut the deficit to five points with just under four minutes to play, but Newberry closed out the half on a strong run to pull away. The scarlet and gray scored the final eight points of the half to take a 41-28 lead into the locker room.
Newberry dominated the glass in the opening 20 minutes, outrebounding Brevard by a 26-13 margin. The scarlet and gray converted those rebounds into 17 second chance points in the half. Newberry shot 44.7% (17-of-38) in the first half, while holding Brevard to 33.3% (8-of-24) from the floor.
The scarlet and gray were able to consistently pull away in the second half, limiting Brevard to 20 points in the period. Newberry outscored Brevard 13-6 in the first 11 minutes of the half, claiming its first 20-point lead of the game at 54-34 on a Watson jumper. Brevard managed to cut the lead to 13 points with 6:07 to play, but Newberry would allow the Tornados to get no closer, pulling away until the final buzzer, when Leeara Creet (Brisbane, Australia) connected on a jumper to make the final score 73-48, marking Newberry's largest lead of the game.
For the game, Newberry connected on 30-of-66 (45.5%) of its shots from the floor and outrebounded Brevard by an astounding 50-23 margin.
Newberry closes out the regular season at home on Saturday, matching up with Lincoln Memorial University for a 2 p.m. tipoff. The scarlet and gray will have a chance at a share of the South Atlantic Conference regular season championship with a win.
