Dec. 17, 2005

Box Score

GREENVILLE, South Carolina - Furman's Lady Paladin basketball team trailed by as many as 15 Saturday afternoon at Timmons Arena, before mounting a second half comeback to hand Davidson a 65-61 loss in both teams' 2005 Southern Conference opener.

Freshman Sarah Baker converted a pair of free throws with 1:37 left on the clock to give Furman its first lead of the night, 60-58. A pair of missed shots by Davidson followed by a Melynda Gant layup off a Melissa Liebschwager pass pushed the Furman lead to four. Another missed offensive opportunity for the Wildcats and a Liebschwager steal forced Davidson to begin fouling and Furman answered with three made free throws on four attempts in the final 30 seconds.

The second half turnaround by the Lady Paladins followed an opening period in which Furman was outshot 44.1% to 30.0%. The Wildcats kept Furman on its heels, contesting every shot while pouring in 12 points on seven steals. The Lady Paladins stayed in the game by going 10-for-12 at the line and trailed 36-30 at halftime.

"This was a total team effort," said coach Sam Dixon after the Furman victory. "We got a great lift off the bench, and in particular from our freshman class. In the second period we did a better job of containing them. They like to penetrate and pitch and we kept them in front of us. Because of that, we were able to contest every shot and that was the difference in the game."

Indeed, Davidson went from shooting 44.1% in the first period to 29.0% in the second half and ended the night six-for-19 from three point range, while Furman connected on six-of-12 treys.

The Lady Paladins were led by freshman Melissa Liebschwager and senior Lauren Few, who each scored 12. Liebschwager scored nine of her points in the second half and also ended the night with two made threes, a pair of assists, and two steals. Fellow freshman Sarah Baker scored nine points, all in the second period, while rookie center Katie Johnson poured in seven points on the night.

The Wildcats were paced by Danielle Hemerka, who totaled 18 points in the game with 15 coming in the first period. Tia Washington added 12 points, five steals and five assists while Hemerka claimed a team-best eight rebounds.

With the win, the Lady Paladins move to 4-4 on the year and 1-0 in the Southern Conference. Furman will host Auburn on Tuesday, Dec. 20, in a 7 p.m. game at Timmons Arena.

The loss dropped the Wildcats to 2-6 overall and 0-1 in league action. Davidson will face UNC Greensboro Monday afternoon in a 2 p.m. game on the road.