Charleston Southern stop Winthrop women
The Winthrop Eagles keep battling through an injury-wrecked season.
The latest chapter was a 58-50 Big South Conference loss to Charleston Southern on Saturday in front of 219 fans at Winthrop Coliseum – a game in which just six players were available.
Senior forward Erica Williams, the only starter from the beginning of the season who isn’t out with an injury, scored 21 points and had 7 rebounds for the Eagles (3-17. 2-9)
Sophomore forward Ronata Rogers scored 12 points and tied a career-high with 15 rebounds. Reserve forward Kayla Atkins, who had previously played inseven games, had nine rebounds.
The Eagles trimmed a 23-7 deficit after one quarter down to three poins in the closing minutes but came up short, losing their second straight game.
“We played our way back in it and had some chances,” Winthrop coach Kevin Cook said. “Things are tough, but nobody’s keeping their heads down.”
Freshman guard Rachel Burns scored 19 points and backcourt mate Alyssa Mann added 15 for Charleston Southern (10-10, 5-6), which led 34-24 at halftime and 43-35 after three quarters.
Turning point
With Winthrop down 43-40 with 7-1/2 minutes to play, Williams drove inside for an apparent basket but was called for an offensive foul. That put the brakes on the Eagles’ rally. Charleston Southern went on a 7-0 run over the next two minutes.
Winthrop couldn’t get any closer than six after that.
“We had some momentum and Erica and the team were in rhythm,” Cook said. “There are a lot of plays in a basketball game, but that turned out to be a big one.”
Critical
Winthrop’s shortage of healthy bodies shows up in the minutes-played statistic. Four of the six Eagles who played logged 33 minutes or more. Guard Naima Jackson played all 40 minutes.
Quote
“Youth has nothing to do with where we are, in my humble opinion. We have a lot of tough breaks — an ankle, a concussion and on and on. You just have to deal with it.” — Cook
“We just have to stay positive. We’re all capable. We can do it.” — Rogers
Star Contributions
Renata Rogers, Winthrop: She grabbed 14 of her 15 rebounds in the second half.
Erica Williams, Winthrop: With junior guard Aliyah Kilpatrick, the Eagles only other double-figure scorer, sidelined, Winthrop’s offense is running almost exclusively through Williams. She recorded her sixth game of the season with 20 points or more.
Rachel Burns, Charleston Southern: She entered the game averaging 5.7 points a game off the bench, but her 16 first-half points got the Bucs off to a sizzling start
On Deck
The Eagles have a quick turnaround, facing UNC-Asheville at 7 on Monday at Winthrop Coliseum.
Box score
CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 58, WINTHROP 50
CHARLESTON SOUTHERN (10-10, 5-6)
Elyse Kiploks 1-5, 1-2 3, Monique Maximilien 3-8 1-2 7, Ke’Asia Jackson 3-12 3-3 9, Rachel Burns 7-16 3-4 19, Alyssa Mann 7-19 0-0 15, Nayla Long 0-2 0-0 0, Brianna Lakes 0-0 0-0 0, Alecia Hardy 2-5 0-2 5, Rochelle Brophy 0-0 0-0 0, Breanna Saunders 0-0 0-0 0. TOTALS 23-67 5-20 58.
WINTHROP (3-17, 2-9)
Ronata Rogers 5-12 2-4 12, Erica Williams 9-22 1-4 21, Nuba Jackson 1-5 2-2 4, Naima Jackson 3-16 2-2 8, CiiCii Buford 1-6 0-0 3, Kayla Atkins 1-4 0-0 2. TOTALS 20-65 7-12 50.
Charleston Southern 23-11-9-15 58
Winthrop 7-17-11-15 50
Three-point goals: Charleston Southern 4-20 (Burns 2-7) Winthrop 3-8 (Williams 2-3) Fouled out – None. Rebounds: Charleston Southern 45 (Kiploks 9), Winthrop 49 (Rogers 15). Assists — Charleston Southern 12 (Mann 4) Winthrop 6 (Williams 3). Total fouls — Charleston Southern 14, Winthrop 14. Technical fouls — None. A-219.
This story was originally published January 30, 2016 at 7:12 PM with the headline "Charleston Southern stop Winthrop women."