Offensive Struggle Leads to 53-45 Loss to GCSU for Lady Cougars

Columbus, Ga. -- On a night when offense was at a premium at the Lumpkin Center, Georgia College and State University got just enough of it to post a 53-45 win over Columbus State in a Peach Belt Conference women's basketball contest. CSU drops to 9-7 overall and 3-3 in the PBC, while GCSU moves to 11-4 overall and 4-1 in conference play.

CSU struggled mightily in the first half, missing its first 13 shots. GCSU, meanwhile, was not much better as they could manage to score only six points during the nine-minute scoreless streak by the Lady Cougars. Phebe Smith finally got CSU on the board with 10:51 to play in the half as she hit one of two free-throws. Freshman Kelsie Weynan drilled a three-pointer for the team's first field goal at the 10:16 mark.

CSU clawed its way back into the game as the Bobcats also struggled to put the ball into the net. After the Lady Cougars trailed by as many as eight points, they worked back into the game and a Smith layup with 1:19 left cut the margin to just one at 19-18. GCSU would take a 21-20 lead into the break. Both teams ended the half with identical shooting numbers, hitting just seven of 29 field goals each. The difference came at the free-throw line as the visitors went 5-7 and CSU went 4-8.

The Lady Cougars tied the game on a Smith free-throw with 19:42 left, and then took its first and only lead of the game on anothe free-throw from the senior All-American with 19:09 to play. Smith was limited to just seven points on the night as the Bobcat defense collapsed on her with two and three players at a time throughout the game. She finished with nine rebounds.

After CSU took the one-point lead, GCSU used a 13-2 run to pull out to its biggest lead. An Antoinette Reames layup with 13:23 to play put the Bobcats up 34-24. Meanwhile, CSU continued to struggle.

The Bobcats kept their lead above six points and would take an 11-point advantage, 43-32, on two Chimere Jordan free-throws with 6:18 to go. The Lady Cougars answered, using a 10-4 run, capped by a three-point play from Ashley Stafford with 2:19 left to make it 47-42.

Jordan answered by herself, as she hit long three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to push the margin back to double digits. Those two shots - the last coming with 1:06 left - effectively sealed the win for the Bobcats. Monique Jefferson's trey with 34 seconds left cut the lead to the final margin of 53-45.

Stafford led CSU with nine points and 10 rebounds on the night, but was just 3-15 from the floor. Six of her 10 boards were on the offensive end as she led CSU to a 43-36 rebounding advantage. Kelsie Weynand added eight points as she went 2-4 from long range. CSU ended the game shooting just 31 percent (17-54) and continued to struggle at the free-throw line, going 7-14.

Jordan led GCSU with 15 points, while Reames added 14 points and 10 boards. Candice Clark chipped in 10 points. The Bobcats shot 48 percent in the second half to finish at 36 percent overall. GCSU had 15 turnovers.

CSU returns to action on the road Saturday at Georgia Southwestern in Americus. The game is set for a 5:30 p.m. start at the Storm Dome.