Jan. 23, 2005
Towson, Md. - Lady Monarch junior Lawona Davis (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) poured in a career-high 25 points as the Old Dominion women's basketball team rolled to an 80-66 win over Towson Sunday afternoon at the Towson Center.
The victory was the Lady Monarchs' 200th regular season Colonial Athletic Association victory since joining the league back in the 1991-92 season. Old Dominion, who improved to 9-6 overall and 5-1 in the CAA, saw its mark go to 200-12 during regular season conference games. The Tigers, off to their best start in the CAA since joining the conference four seasons ago, fell to 11-7 overall and 4-3 in the CAA.
Davis scored eight points in the first three minutes of the second half as Old Dominion erased its five-point halftime deficit and took a 38-36 lead with 17:07 left in the game.
After the Tigers tied the game for the final time at 38-38 with 16:53 left on layup by senior guard Brandi Harris, the Lady Monarchs went on a 10-3 run to take a 48-41 lead with 13:30 remaining.
Shooting 53.6 per cent from the floor in the second half, the Lady Monarchs gradually pulled away from the Tigers. A jumper by Davis with 5:12 remaining gave Old Dominion its first ten-point lead at 65-55. Old Dominion extended its lead to 71-56 with 3:25 left in the game on another jumper by Davis.
Davis led the Lady Monarchs by shooting 9-for-17 from the floor and hitting seven of nine free throw attempts. She also had three steals and blocked two shots.
Old Dominion dominated the game off the boards, outrebounding Towson by a 42-25 margin as freshman Tiffany Green had a game high nine rebounds.
In the win, the Lady Monarchs had 18 offensive rebounds and scored 18 second chance points.
After a first half in which there were four ties and four lead changes, the Tigers grabbed a 33-28 lead at halftime when Alis Freeman banked in a 25-foot three-point shot at the buzzer.
Freeman finished the game with a team high 21 points for the Tigers. She also had seven rebounds, three assists and four steals. Freeman set a Towson single game record by making 14 free throw attempts. She shot 14-for-17 from the line in the game.
Junior Tierra Jackson added 14 points and a team high nine rebounds for the Tigers, who lost their second game in a row.
Davis was one of four Lady Monarchs to score in double figures. Senior guard Shareese Grant (Va. Beach, Va.) added 21 points, including 17 in the second half. Sophomore forward Sherida Triggs (Norcross, Ga.) added ten points and eight rebounds off the bench.
The Lady Monarchs return to action on Thursday when they host last year's CAA runner-up George Mason at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Tip-off is at 7:00 p.m.