Lady ’Canes Down ASU

Lady ’Canes Down ASU

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Augusta State battled back throughout the second half before falling to Georgia Southwestern 65-59 in Peach Belt Conference action Saturday.

The loss dropped ASU to 8-9 overall, 3-6 in the conference. Georgia Southwestern moved to 11-4, 3-3.

The Lady Jaguars were again done in by turnovers in the early goings, falling behind 9-2 in the first 2:30 of the game. The margin grew to as much as 10, and GSW led by nine heading into halftime as ASU suffered 17 miscues in the first half.

But the Lady 'Canes hit the offensive glass hard as well, earning 13 second-chance points early and finishing with 18 on 22 offensive rebounds for the night.

"It was the same story throughout the game, their offensive rebounding kept hurting us," ASU Head Coach Nate Teymer said.

The second half started well for the Lady Jags, as they embarked on a 7-0 run marked by crisp interior passing and a long-range dagger from Amber Peterson that gave ASU its first lead of the game with 12:33 remaining. The teams traded buckets for a while, but GSW began to pull away again, leading by seven with just under six minutes remaining.

The Lady Jags had one more comeback in them, tying things up at 59-all not three minutes later as J Ashby dominated, completing a three-point play, running the floor for a layup, and knocking down two free throws in a two minute span.

But ASU couldn't capitalize, and Tania Walters' trey in the final minute game GSW all it needed for the win.

The Lady Jags shot 46.8 percent on the night ( 22-of-47) but managed just 5-of-15 from behind the arc. GSW finished 27-of-68 (39.7 percent), including just 2-of-15 from downtown, but took 19 more shots than ASU for the game. The Lady 'Canes also forced 27 ASU turnovers as ASU starters managed just 19 points combined.

Ashby booked game-high 21 points, eight rebounds and three steals for ASU and Peterson drained four treys for 12 points.

Adrian Randall paced GSW with 16 points, Tania Walters tossed in 15 and Terra Branch added 11.

The Lady Jags host Columbus State Monday night in Christenberry Fieldhouse at 5:30 p.m.