Box Score
Despite jumping out to an early lead, the Lady Bruins couldn't maintain the upper hand as the Warren Wilson College Owls came back for the 77-60 win on Tuesday night in Asheville, North Carolina.
"We just didn't show up mentally tonight," Bruins Head Coach Mike LeViere said. "We knew the game plan and what we needed to do but we just didn't get the job done."
The Bruins and Owls met earlier in the season with Warren Wilson capturing a double-digit win in Greenville. The Lady Bruins were coming off an impressive 78-55 road win over Columbia International University on Saturday and looked to keep up their winning ways as they took the court in Asheville.
Back to back baskets fueled the Bruins quick start as the team jumped out to an 8-3 lead. The Owls responded with a 7-0 to take the lead at the midway point of the quarter. The Bruins struggled to withstand the defensive pressure by the Owls which forced the team into several possessions and bad decisions. Still, the Bruins led at the end of the first quarter 13-12.
In the second quarter, the Owls rallied behind the energy of their hometown fans as they stole momentum and the lead. Offensively, the Bruins had several good possessions, but they couldn't seem to maintain a consistent offensive presence. The Owls took advantage as they took a 31-22 lead into the break.
As the Bruins came out in the second half, they looked to claw their way back into the game. But the Owls used a 15-2 run to open the quarter and stretch their lead to 45-24. The Bruins were back on their heels and slowly began to try to regroup. As the third quarter ended, the Bruins had made up ground but the Owls still maintained a comfortable 60-34 lead.
With just one quarter remaining, the Bruins knew they would have to get something going offensively to climb back into the game. Amanda Bates banked home a shot to begin the scoring for the team in the 4th quarter, but the Owls again used a sustained offensive run to put the game out of reach. The Bruins couldn't find a way back into the game as the final buzzer handed them a 77-60 loss.
"We had too many turnovers again tonight and allowed them to take 18 more shots than we did," Coach LeViere said. "You aren't going to win too many ball games with stats like that. It's late in the season for us to be making the mistakes like we did tonight."
Amanda Bates was the only Bruins to score in double figures on the night as the sophomore forward finished 13 points and 7 rebounds. Hannah Tompkins scored 9 points to go along with 10 rebounds as the team falls to 11-14 on the season. Next up, the Bruins will be back home for a region-matchup as they welcome Trinity Baptist College on Thursday night.
