Dec. 5, 2007

Box Score

Richmond - The Lady Broncos of Fayetteville State University walked away from their Tuesday evening match-up against Virginia Union University with a 75-69 victory and a four game winning streak.

FSU began the contest with 9-0 scoring run over the Lady Panthers inside Barco-Stevens Hall. Virginia Union didn't score their first basket until the 16:22 mark of the first half. The Lady Panthers battled back by forcing turnovers and inside scoring. Fayetteville State committed 18 first half turnovers, which translated into 14 points for VUU. Virginia Union outscored the Lady Broncos in the paint 12-6 and went into halftime with a 30-25 lead.

Fayetteville State came into the second half refocused and prepared to tackle their deficit. Freshman forward Erica Gilley put the Lady Broncos ahead 40-39, after nailing a three pointer off a VUU turnover with 15:05 remaining. Junior guard Jamara McMillan had a "lights out" second half performance for FSU. McMillan scored 19 second half points; made three of the four 3-pointers she attempted, and grabbed six rebounds. The Lady Broncos shot a blistering 71% (5-of-7) from behind the arc in the second period.

With 6:12 remaining on the clock, the scored was tied for the sixth time for the game at 59. After being fouled and making one of two free throws, McMillan put FSU up by one. Gilley had back to back scores to push the Lady Broncos lead to five.

The Lady Panthers were down 69-68 with 1:33 on the clock and would come no closer. Free throws made down the stretch by Gilley, sophomore L' Oreal Price, and senior Leticia Dickson put the game on ice for the Lady Broncos.

FSU flipped the script and forced Virginia Union into 13 turnovers in the second half, which converted into 34 points. Fayetteville State snatched 15 offensive rebounds (VUU - 5) and scored 21 second chance points (VUU - 11) to help them close out the game.

McMillan finished with a game-high 24 points, seven rebounds, and three assists. Gilley concluded the contest with 11 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Sophomore guard Antoinette Smith was the Lady Broncos third leading scorer with 8 points, along with three rebounds and two steals.

Fayetteville State improves to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the CIAA this season. The Lady Broncos will participate in the North Carolina Central University Lady Eagles Classic held this weekend in Durham, NC. FSU squares off against Barton College on Friday, December 7th and North Carolina Central on Saturday, December 8th.