Jan. 29, 2009

Final Stats

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Freshman Kendra Wallace (Hurricane, W.Va./Nitro) kept up her torrid 3-point shooting, hitting five 3-pointers and scoring a game-high 19 points, but a 12-3 North Florida run in the closing minutes helped UNF take a 74-64 win over the USC Upstate women's basketball team on Thursday night at UNF Arena in Atlantic Sun Conference action.

Wallace was one of three Spartans (9-10 overall, 4-7 A-Sun) to finish in double figures, as she added three assists and a steal. Junior Kolesia Richardson (Mary Esther, Fla./Santa Fe C.C.) added 10 points and six rebounds and sophomore Chelsea McMillan (Quincy, Fla./Santa Fe C.C.) added 14 points and eight rebounds, including a perfect 8-for-8 night from the free-throw line. Junior Courtney Hawkins (Greer, S.C./Greer) also added eight points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.

A dancing in the lane, reverse layup from Juliemay Syquio helped spur a 6-0 run for the Lady Ospreys (4-16 overall, 3-8 A-Sun) with less than two minutes to play, spurring on the 12-3 run to close the game. Syquio also added a four-point play on a fast-break layup and two free throws thanks to an intentional foul to help close out the win.

"Earlier this season, we won a few games because of our poise late," Upstate head coach Tammy George. "Tonight, we lost because we were not the team with the most poise on the court. We made too many mistakes and it cost us. UNF played very hard down the stretch, made some nice plays and deserved to win."

The Ospreys took a 56-53 lead thanks to two free throws from Syquio and a jumper from Shennette Sheffield, but a layup in the paint from Peterson made it a one-point game, where it stayed until a layup from Brittany Kirkland gave the Ospreys their three-point cushion back. The teams traded points back and forth until Syquio's athletic play.

A 3-pointer from Wallace behind the men's 3-point line with 9:00 left gave Upstate a 46-45 lead, but the Ospreys countered with a driving layup in the lane from Sheffield and two free throws from Brittany Kirkland gave UNF a 3-point lead, which dissolved with a 3-pointer from Richardson.

The Spartans started the second half on a 9-1 run that gave the Spartans their first and largest lead at 36-34 after a short jumper in the paint from Wallace. However, the Ospreys responded with seven straight points capped by a 3-pointer from Rachelle Rasley and a fast-break layup from Kayla Mobley.

The Ospreys' run ended on a hustle play from Hawkins, who picked up a steal near the top of the Ospreys' key and ran the length of the court, scooping the ball into the net as she was fouled. A free throw from Hawkins cut the lead down to two points at 41-39. Two more free throws from Hawkins tied the game with 11:22 left.

Upstate started slow against an aggressive UNF defense, as the Ospreys got out to a 9-2 lead with 14:40 left in the first half thanks to six Upstate turnovers and five points from Jennifer Bowen. A 3-pointer from Wallace temporarily stopped the momentum, but Bowen scored four more straight points and a jumper by Kim Baker gave the Ospreys a 15-5 lead.

The Spartans cut the lead to six points at 18-12 thanks to a 7-3 run that included another 3-pointer from Wallace, but North Florida responded with eight straight points to take a 26-12 lead with 8:03 left in the first half. Playing with two fouls each, the Spartan forwards McMillan and Frost led the Spartans back into the game in the next four minutes, with a tough turnaround jumper from McMillan and a 3-pointer from Frost cutting the lead to seven points at 26-19 with 4:31 left.

The teams each traded points during the rest of the half with a 3-pointer from Richardson closing the scoring and giving the Ospreys a 33-26 lead into the locker room.

Kirkland led the Ospreys with 16 points and seven assists while Syquio was a welcome backcourt accomplice, posting 13 points, seven assists and seven steals. Bowen notched 15 points and Guldager had six points and 11 rebounds.

The Spartans wrap up their Jacksonville swing with a 1 p.m. game on Saturday against Jacksonville at Swisher Gymnasium.

Notes
- UNF acknowledged longtime N.C. State head coach Kay Yow, who passed away after a 22-year battle with breast cancer on Saturday, with a moment of silence before the game. Both coaching staffs wore upside down pink ribbons in honor of the coach.
- The Spartans are 8-7 all-time on Jan. 29 ... They are 0-6 at UNF Arena.
- Freshman Kendra Wallace has hit 3-pointers in 17-of-19 games this season.
- With 46 3-pointers this season, Wallace is second in the Upstate freshman record book as she passed senior Courtney Bradley's second-place mark of 45 with her five 3-pointers in the game.
- Upstate turned the ball over a season-high 28 times.
- Sophomore Chelsea McMillan has hit 12 free throws in a row.
- The Spartans were outrebounded, 38-34. It was the seventh straight game they lost the battle of the boards.