GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Elon women’s basketball team got back in the win column today, Feb. 16, after a 70-57 win at Southern Conference rival UNCG in Fleming Gym. The Phoenix improves to 13-11 on the season (10-5 SoCon), while the Spartans fall to 5-19 (2-13 SoCon).
“This win definitely gives us a lot of confidence because UNCG is a great team and they’ve been playing extremely well,” said Elon head coach Charlotte Smith. “At halftime we talked about focusing to finish. Then in the second half I thought we did a good job at getting the ball inside and finishing in the paint.”
Elon shot 64 percent in the second half to finish 28-of-59 for a 47-percent shooting mark from the field. The Phoenix hit 5-of-11 shots from beyond the arc to claim a 45 three-point percentage.
The Spartans finished 23-of-57 from the field to shoot 40 percent, including 42 percent from three-point range. Breonna Patterson led all players in scoring with 18 points.
Ali Ford led the Phoenix with 15 points, hitting 3-of-5 from long distance, and dishing out five assists. Zora Stephenson and Jessica Farmer also finished in double figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Kelsey Evans hauled down a game-high 14 boards to give the Phoenix a 40-33 overall advantage. The senior also finished with two blocks and two steals.
The momentum shifted constantly through the entire first half as both teams scored its points on significant runs.
Elon took the early lead, 7-0, thanks in part to five points by Stephenson. UNCG answered with eight straight to take the one-point advantage at the 14:37 mark.
A layup by Shon Redmond sparked a five-minute 14-0 run for the maroon and gold that gave the Phoenix its largest lead of the half, 21-8. Once again, the Spartans answered and claimed a 22-21 advantage, holding Elon without a basket for six minutes.
Redmond broke the drought for Elon with a layup with 3:04 to play to put the Phoenix back on top, 23-22. A basket at the shot clock buzzer by UNCG’s Janae’ Stevenson with nine ticks left on the game clock gave the Spartans a one-point edge, 26-25, at the break.
The Phoenix came out aggressive in the second frame, opening the half in a 13-4 run to take an eight-point lead, 38-30. Elon went up by as much as 16 after a Farmer jumper put the maroon and gold ahead, 53-37, with 9:57 to play.
The Spartans pulled within seven, 60-53, with just over three minutes remaining before Stephenson drained a three to put the maroon and gold back up by double digits.
Elon made free throws down the stretch to keep the game out-of-reach for UNCG and claim the win by a differential of 13 points.
Elon returns to Alumni Gym for the first time in over two weeks when it hosts Wofford on Wednesday, Feb. 20, for a 7 p.m. tip.