Wildcat W. Basketball Grinds Out Sixth Win in a Row, 56-49

Saturday, February 9

Boone, N.C.

2:00 p.m.

Davidson College Athletics

14-8, 11-1SoCon

Appalachian State

14-6, 8-4SoCon

Team	1	2	F
Davidson	25	31	56
Appalachian State	20	29	49

Shneeka Center had her first career double-double, getting six of her 10 boards on offensive.

Photo by: Tim Cowie - DavidsonPhotos.com

Wildcat W. Basketball Grinds Out Sixth Win in a Row, 56-49

2/9/2013 4:51:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Gavin McFarlin - Assistant SID

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BOONE, N.C. – Despite being held without a field goal in the last 7:42, Davidson's defense stepped up and forced 25 turnovers while holding Appalachian State to 30.9 percent shooting for the game in picking up a 56-49 road win on Saturday afternoon at the Holmes Center in Southern Conference women's basketball action.

Davidson (14-8, 11-1 SoCon), which tallied its season-high sixth win in a row overall, won its sixth straight on the road as well as in league play. ASU fell to 14-6 overall and 8-4 in SoCon play.

Shneeka Center had her first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, getting 11 of her points in the second half. Sophia Aleksandravicius added 14 points and seven boards, while Laura Murray had eight.

All three players hit free throws in the final 5:52 to help keep the Wildcats ahead. Davidson hit eight free throws in all for its only points after a Center layup for its last field goal of the game. The defense forced four turnovers in the last two minutes and had three offense rebounds, keeping the possession going and running the clock down to maintain the lead.

App. State was led by Maryah Sydnor's 18 points, 16 of them in the second half, while Anna Freeman had 15. She canned nine of the points in the first six minutes of the ballgame on three straight triples. Kelsey Sharkely had a game-high 12 rebounds.

Davidson was up 10 (44-34) after Sarah Davis hit her fourth free throw in a row with 9:10 left, but went cold allowing ASU to creep back in. Sydnor went off for seven straight to make it 48-41. She later cut the Wildcat lead to two, 51-49, with four straight free throws and 1:31 left in the game.

But with under a minute to go, Center was fouled on an offensive rebound after a missed three-point try from Murray and canned both free shots to make it 53-49. Another free throw by Barbara Sitton and two more from Murray in the last 29 seconds sealed the win.

Both teams played to an even 15-all tie through the first nine minutes of action to start the game.

Davidson's defense turned up its intensity, holding ASU scoreless over the next seven minutes, grabbing a 23-15 lead on a Murray running layup with 5:29 left. The 'Cats would hold the Mountaineers to 28.6 percent shooting for the half and took a 25-20 lead into intermission.

Davidson got 22 points off the Mountaineers' 25 turnovers and held a 39-38 edge on the glass.

Davidson handed ASU its first home loss of the year and snapped the Mountaineers 13-game overall home win streak, which had dated back to last year when the Wildcats took a 55-52 decision in Boone.

The Wildcats have a quick turnaround as they return home to start a three-game home stretch Monday, Feb. 11, vs. College of Charleston at 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES: The Wildcats won their fourth consecutive in the all-time series vs. App. State … they also swept the two-game season series vs. the Mountaineers for the second year in a row … Davidson has won 23 of its last 26 SoCon games dating back to last January 2012 … head coach Michele Savage reached the 50-win mark for her career at Davidson … the Wildcats had their ninth straight game with 10 or more steals, pocketing 15.