FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern Women’s Basketball team closed out the NSU Thanksgiving classic with a dominant victory over Georgian Court Saturday afternoon from the Rick Case Arena. NSU’s pesky defense, led by six steals from Jess Moors, propelled the Sharks to a 100-34 win over the Lions.
SCORE: No. 22 Nova Southeastern 100, Georgian Court 34
RECORDS: No. 22 Nova Southeastern 6-1, 1-0 SSC, Georgian Court 0-6, 0-0 CACC
LOCATION: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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First Half – The Lions jumped out to a 4-2 lead before seven consecutive points from Corina Conley (5) and Mercedes Simmons (2) put the Sharks up 9-4. The offensive onslaught for NSU continued as they would finish the quarter on a 17-4 run to take a commanding 18-point advantage heading into the second quarter. Georgian Court kicked off the second quarter with a jump shot to end NSU’s run. The Sharks defense would hold the Lions scoreless for the remainder of the half. A three-pointer from Corina Conley jump-started the 30-2 quarter for NSU, capped off by free throws from Payton Graber. The Sharks headed into the half with a 56-10 lead, the lowest points allowed in a half by Nova Southeastern since they held Alabama Huntsville to 13 points during the 2014-15 campaign.
Second Half – Back-to-back buckets from Simmons and Madison Cloonan put the Sharks ahead 50 points two minutes into the second half. The Lions picked up the intensity in the third quarter, but NSU’s swarming defense continued to wreak havoc as they held onto a 79-22 lead going into the final frame. The Sharks kept their foot on the gas pedal in the fourth quarter, ultimately securing Saturday afternoon’s matchup against Georgian Court 100-34.
Mercedes Simmons: 20 points
Corina Conley, 15 points, four steals
Aubrey Stupp: 14 points, four rebounds
Jess Moors: 11 points, six rebounds, six steals
Payton Graber: 7 points, eight rebounds, eight assists
Head Coach LeAnn Freeland-Curry: We had a great weekend of basketball and improved in many areas. Our players did a great job of working hard on defense to create easy opportunities on the offensive end. It was great to strengthen our assist-to-turnover ratio. The exciting thing is that we can still improve in so many ways, and our players are buying in to make the necessary changes.
Payton Graber: We played confidently and together the whole game and shared the ball well. Everyone played their role, which led to a great team win.
Nova Southeastern will travel to Boca Raton to take on Lynn University on Wednesday, December 4th, at 5:00 PM.
