Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls

JCSU Women Uses Big Second Half to Down Bowie State 71-59 in CIAA Quarterfinals

2/22/2017 7:16:00 PM

JCSU Sports Information

Box Score JCSU Women Uses Big Second Half to Down Bowie State in CIAA Quarterfinals, 71-59

Charlotte, N.C. (Feb. 22, 2017) – The Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls (20-7) used a big second half effort to pull away for a 71-59 win over the Bowie State Lady Bulldogs (20-8), Wednesday afternoon in the quarterfinal round of the 2017 CIAA Women's Basketball Tournament. After playing to a close 26-25 halftime lead, the Golden Bulls outscored the Lady Bulldogs 45-33 to pull away for the victory.
 
The game was a hard-fought affair with both teams giving great efforts. In the end, it was the hot shooting JCSU team that came out with the win. As a team, the Golden Bulls shot 42.3% (22-of-52) in the win while Bowie State shot a solid 33.3% (20-of-60) from the floor. Johnson C. Smith was led by freshman guard Maiya Green (San Antonio, Tex.) who scored a team-high 21 points while junior guard Asha Jordan (Monroe, N.C.) added a double-double 14 points with 10 rebounds. Senior guard 
Anika Jones (Shelby, N.C.) added 11 points as well. Bowie State was led by junior guard Kiara Colston who scored 16 points in the game while junior guard Lisa Jing added 11 points with six rebounds.
 
In the early going, it was Bowie State who controlled the game as they took a 13-11 lead after the first quarter. JCSU was able to take an early 11-7 lead after a jumper from senior guard Krista White with 3:06 left in the quarter, but Bowie State closed out the quarter with a six-point run, capped by a Colston lay-up with 55 seconds left that put the Lady Bulldogs on top, 13-11 at the end of the quarter.
 
The second quarter belonged to JCSU with the Golden Bulls using a mid-quarter surge to jump ahead. In the early going, the belonged to Bowie State with a Jing three-pointer with 8:01 left the Bulldogs on top, 16-11. It was then that the Golden Bulls mounted a nine-point run that put the team on top, 20-16 after a lay-up from senior forward MaryAnna Moore (Laurens, S.C.) with 5:06 left to play. The Golden Bulls would keep their lead until a free throw put the Bulldogs on top, 25-24 with 54 seconds left. JCSU would answer with a Jordan lay-up with four seconds left that left the Golden Bulls on top, 26-25 at halftime.
 
Once in control, Johnson C. Smith remained on top with a big third quarter effort. The Golden Bulls went up by as many as eight points, 36-28 after a 10-2 run that was capped by a Jones lay-up with 5:41 left to play. The Golden Bulls would maintain the eight-point cushion until the final minute of the quarter when Bowie State closed the quarter with four unanswered points and ended the quarter with Johnson C. Smith on top, 42-38 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Johnson C. Smith would put the game away with a big fourth quarter that saw the team score 29 points. Bowie State would challenge early with a Proctor lay-up with 7:08 left that left Bowie State trailing, 47-43. However, Johnson C. Smith would go on a 10-3 run that effectively put the game out of reach for Bowie State. At the end of the run, JCSU held a 61-49 lead after a pair of Green free throws with 2:00 left to play. From there, Bowie State continued to fight, but some clutch free throws from the Golden Bulls in the final minutes put the game away. A Colston lay-up with 1:11 left to play would cut the BSU deficit to 10 points, 64-54, but it was all that the Lady Bulldogs could manage as Johnson C. Smith pulled away with the 71-59 victory.
 
With the win, the JCSU advances to Friday's semifinal round where the team will take on the 12^th ranked Virginia Union Lady Panthers in a 3:00 p.m. game. The Bowie State Lady Bulldogs will end their season with a 20-8 overall record.