Lady Braves stay hot, down Lees-McRae

The Robesonian, Lumberton, N.C.
·2 min read

Dec. 4—PEMBROKE — The UNC Pembroke women's basketball team limited Lees-McRae to its worst offensive performance this season on the way to a 66-32 victory on Friday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.

The victory for the Braves (5-2, 4-0 CC) marks the largest margin of victory since a 64-32 victory over St. Andrews on December 31, 2014. The setback for the Bobcats (0-5, 0-3 CC) was the second loss on the road this season.

Alcenia Purnell drained a trey to help UNC Pembroke on a 10-0 run that extended to just under the three-minute mark of the first quarter. Destiny Johnson scored the only basket of the period for Lees-McRae a minute later, and UNCP held an 11-3 lead heading into the second quarter.

The hosts pushed its lead out to 20-3 when Diamond Fedrick made the front end of two free throw attempts. The Braves limited the Bobcats to just 2-for-15 shooting during the second quarter, and a running layup from Hannah Russell at the buzzer sent the teams into the locker rooms with UNC Pembroke leading 27-9.

Lees-McRae used an 11-4 scoring advantage to start the second half and trim its deficit back to 31-20 with 6:54 left in the quarter. UNC Pembroke pushed its lead back out to 41-22 with a three ball from Kelci Adams at the two-minute mark and held a hefty 42-24 lead heading into the final stanza.

An old-fashioned three-point play from Zaria Clark helped extend the UNCP lead out to 25-29 with 5:39 remaining in regulation. The hosts took its largest lead of the night, 66-32, with two made free throws from Jadin Gladden with 50 ticks for the final score of the game.

Zaria Clark established a career-high with 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting. The just-named Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Month was a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe and also pulled down six rebounds.

Alcenia Purnell added nine points highlighted by a 3-for-7 clip from the 3-point line. Purnell also logged three steals and had one block and assist.

Tiara Williams and Gabby Smith each recorded nine points. Williams pulled down four rebounds and had one assist.

UNCP continued to pick up key points from its bench added 35 during the contest. Zaria Clark logged 15, while Hannah Russell added six and Kelci Adams registered five points.

The Braves forced 22 Lees-McRae turnovers and converted those into 24 points.

UNC Pembroke also recorded 13 steals, which marks the most since registering 14 at Georgia College on January 12, 2019.

The Braves will be back in action Saturday to conclude Winter Wonderland Weekend when they face King (4-2, 3-1 CC). Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.