Shreveport– The Centenary women's basketball team rallied from multiple double-digit deficits in the second half against the Wiley College Lady Wildcats on Thursday evening in its home opener to get within two points in the final minutes, but could not take the lead before falling 84-75 in a non-conference contest at the Gold Dome.
The Ladies (0-4) were down 40-34 at halftime and as many as 12 points (48-36) with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter before cutting the Lady Wildcats' lead to 66-64 on a pair of free throws by freshman G Amiyah Barrow (Baton Rouge, La.) with 3:54 left. Sophomore G Alana Jones (Shreveport, La.) hit one of two free throws at the 2:24 mark to make it a 69-67 game but Hendrix scored four-straight points and the Ladies got no closer than four the rest of the way.
Wiley shot 32.4 % (22-68) from the floor for the game but struggled from beyond the arc, going 3-17 for 17.6 %. The Ladies were a little better shooting overall as they finished at 38.8 % (26-67) and finished 5-16 from 3-point range at 31.3 %. Centenary was 18-28 at the free throw line for 64.3 %.
Freshman G TaNyjah Plumber (Kinder, La.) scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Ladies and Jay'lann Myles also scored 20 with 10 rebounds for a double-double to lead three Lady Wildcats in double figures. Jones scored 13 points and added seven rebounds, two assists, a steal, and a blocked shot in 32 minutes on 4-8 shooting. Plumber was 5-16 from the floor in 33 minutes and finished 8-12 from the free throw line. She added a pair of rebounds and a steal to go with her season high in points.
Barrow scored eight points on 3-6 shooting in just 16 minutes and went 2-2 from the free throw line with four rebounds. Senior F Jazzmyn Jones (Normangee, Texas) scored six points and grabbed seven rebounds in 26 minutes. She went 3-6 from the floor and had one steal. Sophomore G Dymon Drumgo (Alexandria, La.) scored five points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds in 19 minutes. Drumgo was 2-11 from the floor and 1-2 from the free throw line with two steals.
Freshman G Brailey Major (Opelousas, La.) scored nine in 24 minutes with eight rebounds on 4-8 shooting and added two assists and two steals. Freshman G Madison Davis (Shreveport, La.) chipped in eight points, a rebound, and a steal in 14 minutes on 3-8 shooting and went 2-5 from beyond the arc. Freshman G Lauren Castillo (Keller, Texas), Senior F Amelia Bagwell (West Monroe, La.), and Freshman G Olivia Sepulvado (Zwolle, La.) each scored two points. Castillo added one assist, Bagwell had an assist and a rebound in 13 minutes, and Sepulvado had two assists and a blocked shot in 13 minutes.
Kaitlyn Davis scored 15 for Wiley, Alaeh Pressley scored 14, and Minnie Miller scored nine points and 10 rebounds. Diamond Hawthorne also had nine points and 10 rebounds and Kayja Jackson scored five points and grabbed seven rebounds. Tamia Dolls scored six points and Ashunti Cooper scored four with three assists, two steals, and a rebound in 12 minutes off the bench. Elizabeth Camacho scored two points and grabbed six rebounds with a blocked shot in 10 minutes. Pressley went 10-11 at the free throw line, Davis went 8-10, and Myles was a perfect 6-6 as Wiley finished a staggering 37-52 from the line for the game for 71.2 %.
Alana Jones, Jazzmyn Jones, Madison Davis, Dymon Drumgo, and Camacho all fouled out as 58 fouls were called in the game. Wiley outrebounded Centenary 57-44, the Lady Wildcats turned the ball over 15 times while the Ladies turned it over 22 times. Wiley tallied 12 steals, nine assists, and eight blocked shots while Centenary finished with eight assists, eight steals, and two blocked shots. The Lady Wildcats scored 23 points off of turnovers while the Ladies got five, Wiley finished with a 38-23 advantage in bench points, and 18-10 in second-chance points.
Wiley led by a point, 18-17, after the first quarter and 40-34 at halftime following a 22-17 edge in the second period. Wiley finished with a slight edge (21-19) in the third quarter to lead 61-53 heading into the final 10 minutes and then Wiley edged the Ladies 23-22 in the final period.
The Ladies remain at home on Friday to play Hendrix College at 6 p.m.
See the Ladies' complete season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/wbkb/2022-23/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests. Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests.
#GoCentenary #CTheOpportunity
