Women's Basketball 10/31/2013 10:04:00 PM

Women’s Basketball Wins Annual “Battle By The Marsh”

Box Score

SAVANNAH, Ga. – After falling to cross-town rival Armstrong Atlantic State in last year's inaugural “Battle By The Marsh” preseason exhibition game, Savannah State women's basketball reclaimed the trophy with a 73-62 win in Tiger Arena Halloween night in front of an estimated 2,564 people.

The field was led by Ezinne Kalu who racked up 24 points in her first outing since suffering a season-ending injury in the 10^th game of the 2012-13 season.

Four Lady Tigers ended in double-digits on the night; Jasmine Norman scored 13, while newcomers Kenyata Hendrix and Bria Dorsey had 11 and 10, respectively.

The Lady Pirates were led by Bryonna Davis who had 17 points, while Mauri Wells recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Brigitta Barta added 10 points.

SSU opened the first half with a 7-2 run, but AASU cut the Lady Tigers lead to only three points a few moments with a 3-pointer from Davis.

The Lady Tigers again pushed out taking a 17-12 lead on a layup from Kalu at the 11:32 mark. The Lady Pirates made SSU pay at the charity strip with a 4-0 run on free-throws only, for a 19-17 lead with 8:58 to play.

Armstrong took an eight point lead, 25-17, with 6:15 to play in the opening half on a 3-pointer from Davis.

Trailing by six points, 23-29, with 3:10 to play, SSU mounted a huge run, sparked by a jump shot from Dorsey. With 1:57 to play, Kalu sank two free-throws to tie the game at 29.

Kalu hit two more free-throws with 16 seconds to play to give SSU a 31-29 lead. Barta sank both of her free shots to tie the game up at 31 with 7 seconds in the half.

On the buzzer, SSU newcomer Rhianna Warren sank a layup to lift SSU to a 33-31 halftime lead.

SSU shot 38.7 percent from the field in the first half hitting 12-31 attempts and 88.9 percent from the free-throw line. The Lady Pirates shot 32.0 percent from the floor, going 8-for-25.

SSU jumped out to a 10-point lead, 46-36, in the first seven minutes of the second half. Moments later, AASU cut that lead to three points, 46-43, with a 7-0 run.

Davis lifted the Lady Pirates to a one point lead, 47-46, with two good free-throws at the 9:37 mark.

SSU responded with a 17-4 run in the following six minutes to take a 62-51 lead with 3:29 to play in the game.

SSU held on to their lead down the stretch, going up by 12 points on two good free-throws from Hendrix with 13 seconds left to play.

SSU shot 85.7 percent from the charity strip, hitting 24 of 28 attempts. Overall, they shot 33.3 percent from the floor. They had 11 steals to AASU's 3.

The Lady Pirates shot at a 65.8 percent clip from the line (25-of-38) and 29.6 percent from the floor. They outrebounded the Lady Tigers 54-47.

SSU opens their regular season schedule with a home game against Columbia College on November 8. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. in Tiger Arena.

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