FAYETTEVILLE, NC --The Fayetteville State women's basketball team fought back from a 52-46 deficit after the third quarter to defeat the Saint Augustine's Falcons 72-62 at home Saturday.

The Broncos (18-2, 11-1) had three players score in double figures, led by Talia Trotter, who had 21 points. Aniylah Bryant added 13 points and three steals and Ashara Hayes chipped in as well with 10 points, eight rebounds and two steals off the bench.

The Falcons (10-10, 4-8) were led by Taniyah Greene who had 14 points and 4 rebounds. 

Led by Morgan Graham's six offensive rebounds, Fayetteville State did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 12 boards that resulted in six second chance points.

Fayetteville State did a great job disrupting Saint Augustine's shots in the contest, coming away with seven blocks. Graham led the way individually for the Broncos with five rejections.

How It Happened

After jumping out to a 12-11 advantage, Fayetteville State went on an 8-0 run with 1:09 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Bryant, to increase its lead to 20-11. The Broncos then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with a 20-13 advantage. Fayetteville State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 20 points.

Saint Augustine's rallied to take a 26-24 lead before Fayetteville State went on a 6-0 run starting at the 1:40 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Keayna McLaughlin, to take a 30-26 lead, a score that would hold until halftime. Fayetteville State dominated in the paint, scoring eight of its 10 points close to the basket.

Fayetteville State then lost its advantage in the third quarter and trailed the Falcons 52-46 entering the fourth. Fayetteville State knocked down three three-pointers in the quarter to score nine of its 16 total points.

Fayetteville State managed to gain control and had a 64-60 lead before going on an 8-0 run to grow the lead to 72-60 with 16 seconds to go in the contest. The Falcons narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Broncos still cruised the rest of the way for the 72-62 win. Fayetteville State fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down four shots to account for 12 of its 26 points.
 

Game Notes

» The Broncos rallied from a six-point 52-46 third quarter deficit to pick up the win.
» The Broncos shot well from three point range, knocking down 10 of 24 long range attempts.
» The Broncos held the Falcons to only 39.7 percent shooting from the field.
» The Fayetteville State bench came alive by scoring 25 points to its scoring output.
» Fayetteville State had a 39-34 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Fayetteville State defense forced 21 turnovers.
» The Broncos were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, tallying seven blocks as a team.
» Fayetteville State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 12 offensive boards in the game.
» Talia Trotter led the Broncos with a game-high 21 points.
» Fayetteville State got a team-high eight rebounds from Ashara Hayes.

The Broncos will travel to Shaw University on Tuesday, February 6th to face off against the Bears with tip-off beginning at 6:00pm.