Box Score
SALISBURY, NC – The Livingstone women's basketball team used a 14-0 run mid-way through the second half to upset the Shaw University Bears, the 8th ranked team in the Atlantic Region, 70-61 Thursday evening.
The Blue Bears improved to 7-11 overall, 3-8 in the conference and 1-0 in the Western Division. Shaw fell to 11-6 overall, 6-5 in the conference and 0-1 in the Western Division.
Senior guard Kayler McBride led the Blue Bears with 18 points and also grabbed five boards. Junior forward Brittany Wright added 13 points and five rebounds while sophomore guard Elicia Gilliam-Washington scored 12 points and junior guard Rashida Elbourne scored 10.
With 12:14 remaining in the second half, the Blue Bears trailed Shaw 45-43, it was Shaw's first lead since they led 2-0, only 23 seconds into the contest. Sophomore guard Rashida Elbourne got the run going for the Blue Bears with a three-pointer to regain the lead. Livingstone scored another 11 points over the next 2:45 to run out to a 57-45 lead with 8:50 remaining, a lead they didn't relinquish.
Shaw came out of the gate and took the first two points of the contest, but Livingstone took the next five to take 5-2 lead, three minutes into the game. The Blue Bears continued to battle hard against Shaw and held a 13-6 advantage with 14:13 left in the half.
The Blue Bears slowly built their lead throughout the first half and hit their largest cushion of the opening stanza with 7:11 to play, at 29-16. Trailing by 13, Shaw went on a 7-0 run and got back within six points at 29-23 with 5:10 remaining before halftime. Livingstone was able to weather the Shaw push and took hold of an 11-point lead with 36 seconds left. A three-point play by Shaw with 26 seconds left in the first half brought the two teams to the halftime score of 35-27.
Kayler McBride led the Blue Bears with nine points in the first half, all coming from long distance while Elicia Gilliam-Washington added eight points. Cassaundra Rhodes grabbed six boards for the Blue Bears while Kelcyn Manurs dished out five helpers.
Shaw came out strong in the second half, eliminating the Blue Bears' eight-point halftime lead in the first five minutes. Shaw was able to take a two-point edge with 12:14 on the clock before Livingstone's 14-0 run. The Blue Bears had to hold off a late charge by Shaw as they were able to match each bucket that Shaw made to secure the 70-61 victory.
As a team the Blue Bears shot 42.2 percent from the field, connecting on 27 of their 64 shot attempts. The Blue Bears also hit 30.4 percent of their three-point attempts and nine of their 10 free-throw tries. The Blue Bears won the turnover battled 30-20 and scored 28 points off the Shaw mistakes.
The Blue Bear women are scheduled to travel to Raleigh, NC on Saturday for a contest against St. Augustine's College. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m.
