DANVILLE, Ky. – The Centre women's basketball team returned to action to face a Rhodes squad that was undefeated in conference play and receiving votes in the WBCA top 25. Ultimately, a cold spell by Centre in the third quarter spelled doom for the Colonels in a 58-46 loss.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
- The Colonels hung tough with the Lynx during the first half, with the lead changing hands numerous times. Centre took its first lead at 9-8 on a three-pointer by
Piper Hensley. Trailing by five,
Payton Herold and
Taylor Garrett made consecutive jumpers to cut the deficit to a point at the end of one quarter.
- In the second quarter, Centre grabbed the lead once more following buckets by
Presley Chirico and Garrett. From there, both offenses stalled and the Lynx took a 29-26 lead at the half.
- The third quarter saw the Colonels go cold, scoring just four points in the first five minutes. At the same time, the Lynx caught fire from long distance, connecting on three straight threes and extending the lead to 19 points at 51-32.
- Centre outscored Rhodes 6-0 in the final 45 seconds of the third quarter, including a buzzer beater from Chirico. The Colonels extended the run to 11-0 at the start of the fourth quarter on a crafty shot by
Bailey Rucker and a three by Herold, cutting the lead to eight points. The Rhodes defense would clamp down and hold the Colonels without a point for the next six minutes as they pulled away to a 12-point victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Chirico posted her second double-double of the weekend, leading the Colonels with ten points while pulling down a team high ten rebounds.
- The Colonels outrebounded the Lynx 41-37, with Hensley grabbing a career high eight boards in addition to Chirico's ten.
- Garrett and
Mackenzie Marovich combined for 14 points off the bench for the Colonels.
- Both teams took good care of the ball, with assist/turnover ratios of 14/10 for Centre and 11/4 for Rhodes.
NEXT UP
The Colonels will go back on the road next week looking for a pair of regular season sweeps, beginning with a matchup against Birmingham-Southern on Friday. Centre defeated BSC 113-87 on Jan. 7 and set multiple program records in the victory.
