Jan. 23, 2010

Box Score

CHARLOTTE - After a strong first half, the Saint Joseph's women's basketball team couldn't get on track offensively in the final 20 minutes as Charlotte outscored the Hawks, 38-20, to earn a 67-58 comeback victory Saturday afternoon at Halton Arena.

Down 38-29 at halftime, the 49ers (11-8, 4-1 Atlantic10) held the Hawks to just 1-of-5 from the floor and caused four turnovers, while using a 15-2 run to open the second half to regain the lead since midway through the first half. A layup by Ashley Spriggs at 15:46 gave Charlotte a 42-40 advantage, with a jump shot by Shannon McCallum extended the lead to 44-40.

From there, Charlotte would go on to out score the Hawks 23-18 to earn its seventh straight home victory. The Hawks shot just 7-of-30 from the floor in the second half (23.3 percent,) while the 49ers went 14-of-27 form 51.9 percent.

In a back-and-forth opening 10 minutes, the 49ers grabbed the biggest lead behind an eight-point run. Charlotte took advantage of two Hawk turnovers as Jessica Johnson capped the run with a layup at 12:18 to give her team a 14-10 edge.

Senior forward Brittany Ford sparked a 7-0 answer from Saint Joseph's, knocking down a pair of layups to tie the game at 14. Junior forward Dominique Bryant followed with a three pointer from the top of the key to give the Hawks a 17-14 lead at 10:45.

Following a Charlotte free throw, sophomore guard Michelle Baker and freshman guard Ashley Prim combined for 13 points as the duo helped the Hawks open a 30-18 advantage on a fast-break three pointer by Prim at 5:13.

Saint Joseph's (9-10, 2-2 Atlantic 10) would keep the 49ers at a distance for the remainder of the first half, taking a 38-29 lead into the second half. The Hawks shot 51.9 percent from the field (14-of-27), while holding Charlotte to just 33.3 percent (13-of-39) in the opening 20 minutes.

Individually, Prim led SJU with 14 points and a pair of steals, while Bryant grabbed a team-best six rebounds.

At the other end, Shannon McCallum posted a 21-point, 10 rebound double-double in the win for Charlotte.

The Hawks return to action Wednesday as they cap the Philadelphia Big 5 portion of their schedule at La Salle. Game time is set for 7 p.m.