Box Score
SALISBURY, NC – Brittany Wright recorded her third double-double of the season Tuesday as the Livingstone women's basketball team defeated Catawba College 79-74.
Wright finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds while Montiya Harrison scored 15 points and also pulled down seven boards and had seven assists.
With the victory the Blue Bears improved to 2-1 on the season while Catawba fell to 2-3 overall. The victory was the first for Livingstone over Catawba since 2005 and the first win over the Indians in Goodman Gymnasium.
Livingstone jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the first two minutes, but Catawba battled back to tie the game at 4-4. The Blue Bears went back up 6-4 and continued to lead at 12-8 with 13:13 left in the first half.
Catawba tied the game at 12-12 with 11:40 left in the opening half before Livingstone put the hammer down on defense. Livingstone scored nine unanswered points to go up 21-12 with 8:20 left in the half and continue to keep the Indians off the scoreboard. Livingstone finished the half on a 26-6 run over the final 11:22 and took a 38-18 lead into the break.
Brittany Wright had 13 points and six boards at the half while Montiya Harrison added eight points and Jasmine Murray and six points and five rebounds. Livingstone held Catawba to only 18.8 percent shooting in the first half while the Blue Bears connected on 36.1 percent of its attempts from the field.
The Blue Bears had to fight off a ferocious charge from Catawba in the second half. The Indians quickly started cutting into the Livingstone lead, going on an 8-2 run in the first minute of the second half. With 12:38 left in the game the Blue Bear lead was down to 12 at 48-36, but Livingstone never quit.
Points from the charity stripe were a big reason why the Indians were able to cut into the Blue Bear lead so heavily. Catawba got within six points at 56-50 with 7:27 left, but an old-fashioned three-point play by Brittany Wright gave the Blue Bears a little momentum back and a nine-point edge.
Kelcyn Manurs put the Blue Bears back up 12 with 3:25 left in the game, but Catawba was still not going away quietly. With 1:13 left the Indians were within seven at 71-64, but the Blue Bears converted their free-throw attempts down the stretch to seal the victory, 79-74.
The Blue Bears shot 38.6 percent from the field for the game while grabbing 44 rebounds and dishing out 13 assists. Catawba shot 33.3 percent from the floor including 48.4 percent in the second half while pulling down 48 boards and dishing out 11 assists.
The Blue Bears will remain on the road next Tuesday, November 30 when they travel to Greensboro, NC for a contest against Bennett College, a NCAA Division III opponent. Game time is slated for 6:00 p.m.
