Shavonda Price tried to shoulder the load with a 22 point, 10 rebound performance in the 59-58 loss to Fayetteville State
Box Score Box Score vs. Fayetteville State
Fayetteville, NC – The Johnson C. Smith University women's basketball team suffered a stunning 59-58 loss to Fayetteville State University on Monday evening inside Felton J. Capel Arena. JCSU has their 10-game winning streak snapped to move to 16-4 overall, 10-1 in the CIAA, and 4-1 in the Southern Division. The Lady Broncos improve to 9-10 overall, 3-7 in the conference, and 2-3 in the division.
JCSU had a sluggish start to the first half. Senior guard
LaQwesha Gamble (Winter Haven, FL) got into early foul trouble and only played six minutes of the first half. The Golden Bulls connected on just nine of 29 shot attempts (31%) in the opening.
Senior guard
Shavonda Price (Fort Wayne, IN) paced the team with eight points and three boards. Fellow senior, forward
April Smith (Auburn, AL) stepped up with six points and five rebounds. Fayetteville State shot 48.5% from the floor led by Akysia Resper's 11 points in the first.
The Golden Bulls faced a 35-26 deficit at halftime; just their third time trailing after the first half this season.
The Lady Broncos held onto their advantage for the majority of the second half. With less than five minutes to play and down 57-48, Johnson C. Smith made their push for a win. The Golden Bulls hit eight unanswered points capped by a three-pointer by senior guard
Terran Quattlebaum (Mitchellville, MD) to draw within one (57-56).
With 46 seconds left in regulation, Je'Lena Robertson was fouled and converted one of two free throw attempts for a 58-56 FSU lead. Price drove to the cup on the other end and drew a foul of her own. She made both shots from the foul line to tie the game 58 all.
In the closing seconds, Robertson went hard to the basket, but missed a layup off the rim. Sophomore forward
LaKendra Wilkerson (Greensboro, NC) grabbed the board off the miss and JCSU took a timeout. Tashama Banner managed to the steal the ball after the inbound and dish to Robertson.
At the free throw line with three seconds on the clock, Robertson made her first attempt to recapture the lead for Fayetteville State. She missed her second attempt and Price was forced to shoot a Hail Mary with the rebound. The shot was off target and FSU pulled off a shocking victory.
Price finished with a game-high 22 points along with 10 boards. Smith produced a career-high 13 points and six rebounds. Gamble had 12 rebounds and six points before fouling out.
Resper and Makeea Suggs contributed 13 and 10 points, respectively for the Lady Broncos.
JCSU will return to action at home against Saint Augustine's on Saturday, February 11th. Game time is slated for 5:30 p.m. inside Brayboy Gymnasium. The Golden Bulls will host their annual Pink Zone game in support of the WBCA's campaign to raise breast cancer awareness. The team will take on the Lady Falcons in their pink uniforms.
