Behind Morton, Augusta women notch 61-39 hoops victory over Claflin
By Shelbie Summerlin | Sports writer
The Augusta University women’s basketball team defeated the Claflin University Panthers 61-39 on Wednesday, Nov. 17, at Christenberry Fieldhouse.
The Jaguars (2-1) led 11-10 after the first period and rolled from there, outscoring Claflin 16-11 in the second, 18-8 in the third and 16-10 in the fourth.
November Morton led AU with 17 points. Morton made five 3-pointers.
Zairya West added 10 points, and Autumn Philips led with 4 assists. Phillips also scored 10. Tomiyah Alford and Kennedi Manning led with 6 rebounds each.
The Jaguars lost the second of their two games on the opening weekend of the season, so they were in no mood to start a losing streak.
“Our goal is not to lose two games in a row, so this is a big bounce back for us,” said AU Coach Millette Green said. “It was a great effort on the defensive end tonight, I think that was the difference in the game,” said Green.
Augusta held Claflin to a 31-percent shooting night and forced 28 turnovers. The Jaguars had only 16 turnovers themselves. Green’s team had 17 steals, including 5 by Morton.
Dionna Long led Claflin (0-2) with 10 points.
Green is still looking for the Jaguars to brush up on some things before traveling to Charlotte, N.C., this Saturday (Nov. 20) to play Johnson C. Smith University. This will be AU’s first road trip of the season. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
“We still have to improve our rebounding,” said Green. “If we’re gonna be able to compete for a championship, we gotta be able to rebound. We had some defensive miscommunication that we need to improve on as well.”
Claflin out rebounded AU 40-35.
Contact Shelbie Summerlin at ssummerlin@augusta.edu.
Tomiyah Alford goes in for a layup for Augusta in the Jaguars’ triumph over Claflin. At the top of the page, Autman Phillips (5) gets off a jumper for AU; she had 10 points. (photos by Shelbie Summerlin)
