Dec. 1, 2007
NEW ORLEANS, La. - The West Florida Women's basketball team improved to 5-3 on the season with a 75-57 win over Dillard in New Orleans on Saturday night. The Argonauts outscored Dillard 44-26 in the second half to win going away, after a tight first half which ended tied at 31. West Florida shot 62% in the second half, and scored on several fast breaks off of rebounds and turnovers. Samantha Schlaegel led the Argonauts with 15 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
"We stepped up the intensity in the second half, and pushed the ball up quick after missed shots, and it created some easy lay-ups," said Argonaut Head Coach Shannan Bergen. "Our bench was outstanding, we got 34 points from our bench, and Renee' (Polk) and Dom (Dominique Boykins) were the keys to the game, as they scored 27 points, and played very well," continued Bergen. "We were definitely a little out of sync the first half, but it was Dillard that forced us to play their game early."
Boykins was a perfect 6-6 from the field and scored 14 points, while Polk added 13 points in 16 minutes. Dillard's Sandra Nweke led all scorers in the game with 16 points. Dillard had as much as a five point lead in the first half, on the strength of 13 offensive rebounds, however, the Argos raced out to a 15 point lead just six minutes into the second half.
Chelsea Patterson kept the Argos close in the first half, as she scored six of her eight points in the first 10 minutes. Foul trouble sent Patterson and Schlaegel to the bench for the last five minutes of the first half. Schlaegel and Patterson would then help jump start the Argos in the first few minutes of the second half. Patterson had 6 assists, and several were on fast break opportunities early in the second half. Dillard, now 5-3 on the season, could not get back into the game after the strong second half surge by West Florida.
Karmeshia Easley added seven points and seven rebounds, while Point Guard Amy Drake recorded seven points, four assists, and three steals. West Florida has now won three straight, and plays again Monday night at Loyola of New Orleans, in a 6:00 tip-off.
