DOBBS FERRY, NY- It's over! The Georgian Court University basketball squad savored the sweet taste of victory for the first time since February 13 , 2010 (vs. Felician College) Tuesday evening as the Lions drubbed host-Mercy College, 76-58, snapping its 32-game slide in the process.
GCU, now 1-2 on the campaign, also earns its first road win since dropping the University of the Sciences back on 2/9/10.
The Lions jumped out to an early 8-2 lead and added 11 unanswered points shortly after to go up 21-8, but the Mavericks immediately responded with eight straight of their own to cut the lead to five and tied it up at 30-30 just before the half. Georgian Court hit four free throws to end the half and take a four-point lead into the break and ran away with the game from there, riding an early 10-2 run to a double-digit lead and extending it to 21 with four minutes to go, but Mercy was able to cut the deficit to 18 before the final whistle.
The Mavericks (0-4) were outrebounded, 58-41, and committed a season-high turnovers but managed to get to the free throw line 30 times, from which the team shot 64 percent. The Lions also made 30 trips to the charity stripe, shooting 67 percent.
Shauneia McPhearson dominiated the box score with a season-high 28 points, shooting 10-for-22 from the floor and a stellar 7-of-8 from the free throw line, in 31 minutes. She also grabbed nine boards. Tahira Matthews contributed her second consecutive quality performance has she drained 18 points in 29 minutes, going 6-for-11 from the field and 6-for-9 from the charity stripe. She too tied for the game-high with nine rebounds.
Brittany Baker also collected nine rebounds (seven points) in her 17 minutes of action.
Mavericks forward Talia Beaulieu (Sr.-Waldorf, Md.) paced the Mavericks in scoring with 12 points, with junior guard Jessica Biggs (Nanuet, N.Y.) and forward Shaniqua Lewis (Fr.-Staten Island, N.Y.) each added 10 as Lewis hit all four of her field goal attempts. Forward MarQuesha Moore (Jr.-Bryans Road, Md.), starting in place of injured forward Jasmine Williams, led the team with seven rebounds in just 18 minutes due to fouling.
Georgian Court enjoys a well-deserved Thanksgiving break before returning to action Saturday evening at 7PM when they take on host-East Stroudsburg University in the Warriors' annual Pocono Rotary Classic
