Jan. 18, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. (UCFAthletics.com) - Freshman Aisha Patrick (Rockledge, Fla.) had a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds for UCF (5-12, 3-1 C-USA), but host Southern Miss (10-7, 3-1 C-USA) erased a halftime deficit and held on for a 69-64 victory Sunday afternoon in Conference USA women's basketball action at Reed Green Coliseum.
It was the second time the teams had met this season, with UCF winning the first meeting 65-59 in Orlando on Jan. 3. The loss drops UCF, the lone unbeaten team left in conference play entering Sunday, into a six-way tie for first in league play. Southern Miss, Houston, UTEP, Marshall and SMU join the Knights at 3-1.
The visiting Knights jumped out to a quick start in the opening half. Midway through the first 20 minutes, UCF ripped off a 14-4 extended run capped by a Patrick jumper to lead 30-18 with 4:09 remaining.
Patrick tallied double figures for the fourth time in as many C-USA contests, hitting 7-of-12 shots from the field. With a career-high 12 rebounds, the freshman led UCF to a 39-35 edge on the glass against the league's top rebounding team.
The Golden Eagles hung around and closed the half effectively, however, using a 15-6 run of their own to cut the Knights' halftime lead to 36-33.
After being slowed considerably to just seven points and two rebounds in the first half, junior Pauline Love led a Southern Miss charge in the second. The two teams were knotted at 40-40 early in the period before the host Golden Eagles scored nine-straight points and never trailed again. After committing just six turnovers in the first half, UCF turned the ball over five times during the Golden Eagles' run.
Love scored 14 of her 21 points in the second half and added 10 rebounds for her league-leading 13th double-double. For the game, she hit 9-of-17 shots from the field, including 1-for-3 from long range.
UCF refused to go quietly over the final 10 minutes, cutting the lead to a single point on three different occasions, the last time on a jumper by sophomore Marshay White (Rochester, N.Y.) with 3:42 left.
White came off the bench to score 13 points in 24 minutes. The southpaw hit 4-for-8 from the field and five of her six free throws.
After a Amber Eugene layup, sophomore Chelsie Wiley (Riviera Beach, Fla.) had a look at a three to tie, but the shot rimmed out and Kendra Reed hit a triple on the other end to extend the lead to six with 2:19 remaining. The Knights would get no closer than three the rest of the way.
After shooting 48.4 percent in the first half, UCF hit just 10-of-35 shots in the second half for 28.6 percent. The Knights finished the game at 37.9 percent (25-66) while Southern Miss hit 27-of-54 shots for 50.0 percent.
Sophomore Amber Kirkpatrick (Lawrenceville, Ga.) tied Patrick for game-high honors with 14 points, her most since joining the Knights. Wiley was the fourth UCF player in double figures, finishing with 13 to eclipse 10 or more for the ninth-straight game.
Sophomore Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.) failed to reach double figures for just the third time this season. The reigning PBC Player of the Week finished with eight points, six rebounds and two blocks.
With the three-game road trip in the books, UCF returns to its home floor on Thursday, hosting Rice at 7 p.m. at UCF Arena.
Season tickets for the UCF women's basketball program are currently on sale through the UCF ticket sales office. For more information about the arena's premium seating options, including club seats, group discounts, courtside tables and suites, contact the UCF ticket sales office at (407) UCF-1000 or visit the women's basketball ticket page at UCFAthletics.cstv.com/tickets/w-baskbl-tickets.html.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Newspaper Box Score
UCF vs Southern Miss
1/18/09 2 p.m. at Hattiesburg, Miss. (Reed Green Coliseum)
At Hattiesburg, Miss. (Reed Green Coliseum)
SOUTHERN MISS 69, UCF 64
UCF (5-12, 3-1 C-USA)
Patrick, Aisha 7-12 0-0 14; Kirkpatrick, Amber 6-17 2-3 14; White, Marshay 4-8 5-6 13; Wiley, Chelsie 3-8 5-6 13; Cannon, Emma 4-11 0-1 8; Daniels, D'Nay 1-2 0-0 2; Paige, Leah 0-0 0-0 0; Caldwell, Jelisa 0-1 0-0 0; Mealing, Angelica 0-7 0-0 0. Totals 25-66 12-16 64.
SOUTHERN MISS (10-7, 3-1 C-USA)
LOVE, Pauline 9-17 2-3 21; EUGENE, Amber 5-7 2-2 12; MURPHY, Robin 3-7 3-5 9; HELGESON, Stephanie 4-8 0-2 8; BARBER, Andrea 3-7 0-0 6; REED, Kendra 1-2 2-2 5; GATLING, Erin 0-0 4-4 4; WASHINGTON, Tanesha 2-4 0-0 4; MAYS, Shanice 0-0 0-0 0; JOHNSON, Brittany 0-0 0-0 0; RUCKER, Candace 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-54 13-18 69.
UCF................................. 36 28 - 64
Southern Miss....................... 33 36 - 69
3-point goals--UCF 2-13 (Wiley, Chelsie 2-6; Kirkpatrick, Amber 0-3; White, Marshay 0-2; Caldwell, Jelisa 0-1; Mealing, Angelica 0-1), Southern Miss 2-8 (LOVE, Pauline 1-3; REED, Kendra 1-2; BARBER, Andrea 0-1; WASHINGTON, Tanesha 0-1; RUCKER, Candace 0-1). Fouled out--UCF-None, Southern Miss-HELGESON, Stephanie. Rebounds--UCF 39 (Patrick, Aisha 12), Southern Miss 35 (LOVE, Pauline 10). Assists--UCF 8 (Wiley, Chelsie 3), Southern Miss 15 (BARBER, Andrea 3; EUGENE, Amber 3; HELGESON, Stephanie 3). Total fouls--UCF 19, Southern Miss 16. Technical fouls--UCF-None, Southern Miss-None. A-1559