Lady Golden Bears Dominates UWA in Opener
Box Score When West Alabama scored the first basket in Miles' women's basketball team's season opener, it put the Lady Golden Bears in an early hole. Little did anyone know it was the only deficit they would experience during the game.
Miles slowly built a lead in the first half before exploding to a 19-point advantage before the break. Four players scored in double figures, led by Jovanne Brown's game-high 19 points, in a 71-56 victory over UWA at Knox-Windham Gymnasium.
"It was a great game. We have 10 new people out of 15, and I thought we would go through some growing pains. But it is good to go through some growing pains and still get a win," said Miles head coach Phillip Wallace.
Porshia Blue had a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds), Wendy Miller came off the bench to score 14 points and grab nine boards and Ashley Steger had 10 points to pace Miles (1-0). Brittany McCloud scored 15 points to pace UWA (0-1).
With the score tied at 7, Miles went on an 11-2 run, then followed it with a 14-4 jaunt that gave the Golden Bears a 39-20 advantage late in the first half. Many of the Miles buckets were easy thanks in large part to a stifling defense that forced 12 turnovers in the first half and held UWA to 33 percent shooting, including 0-for-9 from the 3-point line.
"We're trying to establish ourselves as a defensive team. I think if we can get out and play good defense, it will ignite our offense, let us get into a rhythm, and get into a good flow to the game," Wallace said.
Ahead by 16 at halftime, Miles struggled to stay focused to start the second half. The Tigers cut the deficit to 12 points midway through the second half, but a succession of Golden Bears scored at will during a 14-1 run to put the game out of reach.
Having the multiple scoring options could bode well for Miles as the season progresses.
"They can't start picking on one person. We can all get a piece of it when we have a lot of scorers on the floor," said Brown, who was 4-of-6 from the field and 11-of-14 from the charity stripe.
Miles will play its next two contests this weekend against Elizabeth City State and Virginia State in Atlanta.
