UNCG defeats Providence, 72-68, to win UNCG Thanksgiving Tournament

GREENSBORO, NC – Kristen Boone’s 22-footer from the left wing as the shot clock expired sealed the win as UNC Greensboro handed Providence its first loss of the season, 72-68, in the championship game of the UNCG Thanksgiving Tournament.

Boone, a junior from Upper Marlboro, MD, hit the slightly off-balance shot with just 18 seconds to play to give the Spartans a four-point lead. It was just her second field goal of the afternoon, both of which in the final 2:38.

Jasmine Byrd led the Spartans (5-1) with 23 points, the fourth time she has topped the 20-point mark in five games this season. She knocked down 6-of-12 from three-point range. The six three-pointers were one shy of a school record. Byrd was also named tournament Most Valuable Player.

“I feel good,” said Byrd after the game. “I have a different mindset this year and I’ve learned to keep my head and stay positive. My teammates have really helped me keep my composure and put up big shots.”

KaLeah Latham finished with 15 points for the Spartans and pulled down a team-high 10 boards. Senior Irene Otamiri and junior Meghan Chamberlain had nine points each.

The win marked the second straight season UNCG has beaten a Big East opponent. Last year, UNCG topped West Virginia at home for the program’s first-ever win over a Big East school. It was also UNCG’s eighth-straight home win.

The last time the Spartans won their own tournament was in the 2002-03 season after defeating Loyola and East Carolina.

“It feels great to win our own tournament,” stated head coach Lynne Agee, who has 497 career wins at UNCG. “We played extremely well and I am very pleased to keep the trophy here at home.”

Chelsea Marandola had a double-double for Providence (6-1) with a game-high 28 points to go with 10 rebounds.

“Marandola is an unbelievable player for Providence,” said Agee. “She makes big plays for her team and is a great player to watch.”

The Spartans jumped out to an early 13-2 lead in the first five minutes. However, the Friars made a run of their own and brought the margin as close as two with five minutes left, 25-23. The Spartans then scored nine unanswered points, including Byrd’s third three-pointer in the half, and went into intermission with a 36-26 lead.

Providence got its first lead of the game at the 10:37 mark. Aga Lorenc converted a conventional three-point play for her first points of the day and gave the Friars a 49-47 lead. At 5:20, Otamiri tied the game up at 61 after converting a three-point play. The Spartans grabbed final lead with 1:30 to play when Otamiri put up another big shot for the 69-68 advantage.

“Kristen and Irene made big shots for us at the end and we held our poise to take the win,” said Byrd.

UNCG finished with 43 total rebounds, including 20 offensive boards. The Spartans also shot 71.4 percent (10-14) from the free-throw line and are now 21-3 when scoring more than 70 points over the last three seasons.

“We took back the moment in the last five minutes after losing the lead in the beginning of the second half,” said Agee. “The focus was put back on defense and we picked it up. Our rebounding was outstanding and we hit the free-throws when we needed to.

“I am very happy with the win and with the way we played today.”

UNCG travels to North Carolina on Thursday to take on the nationally ranked Tar Heels. Game time set for 7 pm.

AGATE
UNCG 72, PROVIDENCE 68

PROVIDENCE (6-1)
Marandola, Chelsea 10-13 6-6 28; Bove, Catherine 7-13 3-3 18; Snyder, Shauna 3-12 0-0 6; Cournoyer, Emily 2-5 1-2 5; Lorenc, Aga 2-3 1-1 5; Baugh, Kristina 1-1 0-0 3; Holmes, Kendria 1-4 0-0 2; Howard, Danielle 0-3 1-4 1; Dorsey, Brittany 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-55 12-16 68.

UNCG (4-1)
Byrd,Jasmine 7-17 3-4 23; Latham,Kaleah 6-12 3-5 15; OTAMIRI,IRENE 4-7 1-1 9; Chamberlain,Meghan 3-11 3-4 9; DIXON,JASMINE 3-5 0-0 7; Boone,Kristen 2-8 0-0 5; Frazier,Brittany 2-4 0-0 4; Grimsley,Gini 0-1 0-0 0; Ling,Ashley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-65 10-14 72.

Halftime: UNCG, 36-26. 3-point goals--Providence 4-7 (Marandola, Chelsea 2-2; Bove, Catherine 1-3; Baugh, Kristina 1-1; Dorsey, Brittany 0-1), UNCG 8-16 (Byrd,Jasmine 6-12; DIXON,JASMINE 1-1; Boone,Kristen 1-1; Grimsley,Gini 0-1; Latham,Kaleah 0-1). Fouled out--Providence-None, UNCG-None. Rebounds--Providence 29 (Marandola, Chelsea 10), UNCG 43 (Latham,Kaleah 10). Assists--Providence 11 (Baugh, Kristina 4), UNCG 14 (Boone,Kristen 5). Total fouls--Providence 18, UNCG 17.Technical fouls--Providence-None, UNCG-None.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Odessa Williams – Longwood
Amber Bland – North Carolina A&T
Chelsea Marandola – Providence
KaLeah Latham – UNCG
Jasmine Byrd – UNCG (MVP)

******

Aggies defeat the Lancers, 79-63, in consolation game of the UNCG Thanksgiving Tournament

GREENSBORO, NC – North Carolina A&T Aggies defeated the Longwood Lancers, 79-63, to win the consolation game of the UNCG Thanksgiving Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Fleming Gym.

North Carolina A&T (2-4) was once again led by Amber Bland, who finished with a game-high 24 points and six assists. Ta’Wuana Cook tallied 18 points and six rebounds, while Lonise Coulter had 10 points for the Aggies.

Odessa Williams was the lone Longwood player in double-figures with 21 points. She also tallied a team-high seven rebounds. Becky Fernandes and Ashleigh Hollman finished with nine points a piece.

The Aggies held the close lead throughout the first half but were unable to break away until the 23-21 mark. NC A&T went on a 9-0 run to take the 32-21 lead, led by Bland, who tallied seven points in the run. The Aggies closed out the first stanza on a 6-0 run, shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 60 percent from beyond the arc for the 43-28 halftime advantage.

North Carolina A&T opened up the second half on a 9-4 run to extend their lead to 20, forcing a Longwood timeout at the 16:43 minute mark. The Aggies continued to expand their lead and led by as much as 30 on two occasions to go on to the 79-63 victory.

Longwood turned the ball over 22 times, which resulted in 21 Aggie points.

Bland from A&T and Williams from Longwood were each named to the All-Tournament team.

North Carolina A&T travels to South Carolina State on Saturday, while Longwood goes back home to take on Campbell on Tuesday.

AGATE
NORTH CAROLINA A&T 79, LONGWOOD 63

LONGWOOD (3-3)
Williams,Odessa 8-13 5-9 21; Fernandes,Becky 3-7 3-6 9; Hollman,Ashleigh 3-7 1-3 9; Freese,Abigail 2-7 0-0 6; Dyer,Courtney 2-4 1-1 6; Mascherin,Leigh 2-4 0-0 6; Steg,Anna 3-9 0-0 6; Blevins,Claire 0-0 0-0 0; Smith,Cassandra 0-1 0-0 0; Sims,Amber 0-2 0-0 0; Small,Keiva 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 10-19 63.

NORTH CAROLINA A&T (2-4)
Bland,Amber 10-18 2-2 24; Cook,Ta'Wuana 5-10 7-9 18; Coulter,Lonise 4-5 2-3 10; Lowry,Laporsha 4-6 0-2 8; Smalley,Lamona 3-6 1-2 7; Waddell,Shantar 3-6 0-0 6; Williams,Ahmad 0-5 4-6 4; Gordon,Jasmine 1-2 0-1 2; Williams,Latoya 0-0 0-0 0; Jelkes, Sheliah 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-59 16-25 79.

Halftime: North Carolina A&T, 43-28. 3-point goals--Longwood 7-19 (Mascherin,Leigh 2-4; Hollman,Ashleigh 2-4; Freese,Abigail 2-6; Dyer,Courtney 1-3; Smith,Cassandra 0-1; Williams,Odessa 0-1), North Carolina A&T 3-9 (Bland,Amber 2-5; Cook,Ta'Wuana 1-4). Fouled out--Longwood-None, North Carolina A&T-Coulter,Lonise. Rebounds--Longwood 31 (Williams,Odessa 7), North Carolina A&T 43 (Smalley,Lamona 7). Assists--Longwood 15 (Hollman,Ashleigh 5), North Carolina A&T 18 (Cook,Ta'Wuana 7). Total fouls--Longwood 21, North Carolina A&T 18. Technical fouls--Longwood-None, North Carolina A&T-TEAM. A-131

- UNCG -