The Elon University women’s basketball team kept it close and led at points in the game but could not survive a late run and ultimately dropped a 73-62 contest to the University of North Carolina-Greensboro inside Fleming Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 4.
Starting strong is key, but finishing is even more important. On this day, finishing was the issue for the Phoenix. Elon got out to a quick 6-0 lead early in the first half but the Spartans of UNCG responded with a 16-6 run that gave them a 16-12 lead with 11:49 to play in the half.
This run was aided by six Elon turnovers in the first six minutes of play, a problem that plagued the Phoenix all afternoon long. Elon turned the ball over 14 times in the first half and finished with 24 for the game. The Spartans turned the ball over 18 times themselves, but scored 21 points off of Elon turnovers.
An efficient first half of shooting allowed Elon to stay within reach in the first half, as the Phoenix shot 55 percent from the field in the frame. Junior Shannen Cochraham led the Phoenix attack in the first half, scoring a team-high 10 points, and finished the game with a career-high of 19 points on 9-of-15 shooting.
UNCG shot just 33 percent in the first half, but found success at the free throw line. The Spartans made 11 free throws in the half, while Elon did not even attempt a free throw. Lucy Mason led all Spartan scorers with 12 points in the half, but her Spartans trailed the Phoenix, 34-31, after 20 minutes.
Elon once again started strong in the second half and led by as many as eight with just over 17 minutes remaining in the half. The game remained close throughout the second half, but a 9-2 UNCG run to finish the game was too much for the Phoenix to handle.
A second half of improved shooting was just what UNCG needed after their poor shooting in the first half. They did just that and shot 51 percent from the field in the second half, led by 15 points from senior forward Janae’ Stevenson. Stevenson finished with 19 points. Mason, last year’s SoCon freshman of the year, led all scorers with 22 points.
In addition to Cochraham’s 19 points, senior guard Kelsey Harris added 12 points. Greensboro native Sam Coffer led Elon rebounders, pulling down seven in the game. Off the bench, freshman forward Lenaira Ruffin added eight points.
The loss was the second SoCon loss of the season for the Phoenix, which drops to 5-9 on the year and 1-2 in the SoCon. Elon hits the road for its next game, a Saturday afternoon affair against Davidson College on Jan. 11.