(Fairfax, Va.) – Aiming for its first victory of the season, the Delaware State women's basketball team (0-3) came up short Wednesday evening on the road to the Atlantic 10's George Mason (2-1), 110-91, with all five Patriot starters scoring in double figures and the team shooting a blistering 53 percent (40-of-75) from the floor.
In the first half, Mason led by as many as 14, headlined by guards Tayler Dodson (5-of-7) and Taylor Brown (5-of-9) dropping 13 points and 11 points, respectively. However, the Lady Hornets used a 10-2 run to get back in the game, capped off by one of Mikah Aldridge's two treys in the opening stanza to make it a 40-37 ball game at the 4:47 mark.
George Mason, meanwhile, built its lead back to eight after a Sandra Ngoie three with 2:35 left before intermission, the team's' fifth at that point. Yet, the Lady Hornets battled back once again, this time with Raine Bankston completing a three-point play after hitting her seventh free throw to make it a 53-49 ball game heading into the locker room.
At the break, forward Tierra Hawkins led all DSU scorers with 13 points (5-of-10), while guard Raven Bankston tallied 10 points (3-of-8). From the charity stripe, the Hornets took advantage of 14 George Mason fouls to go 19-for-20 (.950).
The second half, on the other hand, featured George Mason opening on an 18-7 run after back-to-back layups by Dodson and Jasmine Jackson to make it a 71-56 ball game, forcing a DSU timeout with 14:51 left in regulation.
As the half progress, the Pats continued their hot-shooting, as Ngoie drained her fifth trey of the night to give her team a commanding 82-63 lead at the 11:56 mark. The rest of the way, the Lady Patriots would lead by as many as 28 to hold on the for the 19-point victory.
When the final buzzer sounded, George Mason shot 53 percent (19-of-36) in the second half, in addition to wrapping up the night going 12-for-24 (.500) from 3-point range. Finishing with a team-high 19 points (8-of-11), including a perfect 3-for-3 effort from long distance, was Dodson. Brown, who was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week on Monday, finished with 16 points (7-of-16).
On the other hand, DSU finished shooting 37 percent (28-of-76) from the field, led by Rav. Bankston's game-high 33 points (9-of-17). Rav. Bankston also went a perfect 9-for-9 from the charity stripe to match a career-high in free throws made. Hawkins, meanwhile, recorded her second consecutive double-double with 25 points (9-of-17) and 10 rebounds.
Coming up, the Lady Hornets will return home for the first time this season next Monday evening (7 p.m.) against Millersville.
Stingers
Nikki Blackburn set a career-high in rebounds with a game-high 14… DSU shot 31-of-34 (.857) from the free throw line… On DSU's all-time career list,
Tierra Hawkins is now seventh in points (1,345) and ninth in rebounds (620)… Tallying two assists,
Jade Washington is now fifth on DSU's all-time list with 240… Hornets are now 2-8 all-time against George Mason… 110 points allowed by DSU is the most given up since falling 116-39 to No. 8 North Carolina State on Dec. 21, 1996.
