Box Score
The Lady Bruins spread the scoring around as nine different players scored with four scoring in double-figures in the Bruins 76-62 win over Columbia College on Monday night. "For the beginning of the year, I am really happy with where we are but we have a long way to go," Coach Mike LeViere said. 

 

The Bruins came into their home opener with a 3-1 record having won back-to-back games over Truett-McConnell College and Johnson University. The Koalas of Columbia College sat at 1-2 on the season. In each of the previous 5 games between the Koalas and Bruins, the home team prevailed. The Lady Bruins were hopeful that history would repeat itself as they took the court in front of their hometown fans. 

From the opening tip, the Bruins came out as Maggi Ford knocked down a three to open the scoring for the team. Sha'Ron Brunson came off the bench for the Bruins and knocked down a pair of shots through the lane to help the Bruins close out the quarter strong with a 17-9 lead. 

In the second quarter, the Koalas took their adjustments and clawed their way back into the game with an 8-2 run to cut into the Bruins lead. BJU countered with a great press defensively forcing several turnovers which turned into points. Despite the efforts, the Koalas remained close and took the lead 26-25 off a Amber Sherrill three-point shot. The Bruins responded by again closing out the quarter strong as they scored 8 points in the final two minutes of the half to take a 38-30 lead into halftime. 

"We're a hard team to scout offensively," Coach LeViere said. "For us, the go-to shooter is the open shooter and that is the way we want it. One of our goals is always to outrebound the other team. That isn't just our post players but each player collectively boxing out and going after the ball and I thought we did a good job of that tonight."

As the second half began, the Bruins used back-to-back buckets by their post players to open up their first double-digit lead. The team continued to play smothering defense on the press, but the Koalas began to find a seam in the press to score. At the midway point of the quarter, Maggi Ford stole the momentum back the Bruins way as she knocked down a three-point shot and was fouled on the play. Refusing to quit, the Koalas closed the gap quickly as the Bruins held just a 53-50 lead going into the final quarter.

With victory in their sights, the Bruins used an 8-0 run early on in the 4th quarter to jump back out to a lead. The Koalas tried to get back into the game, but each shot by Columbia College was met with points on the other end for the Bruins as the team held on for a 76-62 win.  

"We've got to be ready to get back to work," Coach LeViere said. "It's nice to have a home stretch here and the team is excited knowing that we can get that much better looking at the mistakes we've made and keep improving." 

Maggi Ford led the Bruins with 15 points while Kendra Jeffcott had 13 points to go along with 10 rebounds. Sha'Ron Brunson provided a spark off the bench with 11 points and Julia Wright also scored 11. The Bruins forced 19 turnovers on the night and were tied in the rebound margin at 41-41. With the win, the team improves to 4-1 on the season. Next up, the Bruins will welcome Reinhardt University on Thursday night.