MONTGOMERY, Ala. - The West Georgia Wolves women's basketball team never trailed on Wednesday night in Montgomery, Alabama, cruising past the Alabama State Hornets by a 63-46 tally in road non-conference action.
West Georgia (5-4) shot 40 percent from the field and held the Hornets to a 35 percent clip defensively en route to their fifth win in the last six games.
"I'm really proud of the team, I mean, a road win is tough to get and I thought we came out with great energy and great tempo," said head coach Joanna Reitz. "We set the tone early and did a better job in the second quarter protecting the ball and we were able to build a big lead."
The Wolves used that big second quarter, outscoring the Hornets 24-12, to build a big lead which was enough despite a tough second half.
"In the second half we weren't as clean offensively and had way too many turnovers and that's why we didn't score as much," Reitz added. "Our defense was impressive for three quarters but I thought we let up there in the last quarter."
Freshman Destiny Jones had another fantastic performance, recording the third double-double of the season with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
"She's fast and she's strong, and does a really good job on the boards and she's relentless," Reitz said of her freshman. "She's consistently a double-double for us and we're counting on her for it and she's answering the call."
The first half started with the Wolves scoring the first four points of the game, and quickly building as much as a 10-point lead, which was the margin at the end of the opening 10 minutes.
Jones scored 20 of her points in the first half, shooting 6-of-9 from the field and adding eight points at the free throw line. The Wolves outscored the Hornets 24-12 in the second quarter, and got the lead to 22 at the break thanks to a half court buzzer beater by Zuriyah Davis to make it a 41-19 lead.
Both teams struggled out of the halftime break, combining for just 18 points in the third quarter.
Despite the second half struggles, however, the lead stayed north of 20 points until the final two minutes of the game.
West Georgia dominated on the glass, pulling down 46 rebounds to just 29 by ASU. UWG grabbed 14 offensive boards and 16 second chance points. The Wolves also dominated down low offensively with a 40-18 advantage in points in the paint.
Sydne Tolbert joined Jones in the double-figure column with 13 points while Amanda Blake added eight. Along with Jones' game-high 11 rebounds, K'Nari Holliday had seven.
West Georgia stays on the road for one final game before the Holiday break, traveling to Vanderbilt on Saturday for a 12 p.m. tip-off from Memorial Coliseum in Nashville.
"They're tough, and we're shocked they're not in the top-25," Reitz said of the Commodores. "They pressure, they press, they trap, so it's another game where we've got to take a step in protecting the basketball."
