Tribe Snaps Longwood’s Three-Game Winning Streak with a 70-56 Victory

12/07/07 10:10PM

FARMVILLE, Va. - The William and Mary women’s basketball team snapped Longwood’s three-game winning streak with a 70-56 triumph on Friday evening in Farmville, Va. With the victory, W&M improves to 4-4, while the Lancers fall to 5-6.

Senior Kyra Kaylor led the College with a team-high 20 points, while sophomore Tiffany Benson recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Courtney Portell added 14 points and nearly equaled a single-game school record with eight steals (all of which came in the first half). Senior Devin James also finished in double figures scoring with 13 points and registered six steals.

The Tribe limited LU to just 37.7 percent shooting and forced 28 turnovers. W&M’s 19 steals is the fourth-best single-game total in school history.

The Green and Gold began the contest well and jumped out to an 11-6 lead at the initial media timeout. Kaylor played a key role during the opening stretch, as she scored nine of the 11 points.

While Longwood narrowed the margin to just two, 14-12, at the 11:37 mark, W&M pushed ahead with a 7-0 run. Benson began the stretch with a pair of layins, while James sank a three-pointer from the left wing to complete the run.

LU countered the Tribe’s run by scoring eight unanswered points to draw within one, 21-20, during the next four minutes. However, W&M responded with another 7-0 spurt to reclaim a comfortable advantage.

At the break, the College led 33-24 and was out-shooing LU 46.7 percent to 33.3 percent. Kaylor led all scorers with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting, while Benson had nine points. Defensively, Portell had eight of W&M’s 12 steals.

Although both teams struggled to find their offensive rhythm early in the second half, W&M began the frame with a 10-1 run to go ahead, 43-25. Junior Dani Kell and Portell punctuated the run with a pair of three-pointers.

Shortly thereafter, the Lancers utilized a 6-0 spurt to cut the gap to 12, but W&M quickly answered the charge. Portell sank a three-pointer and James converted two layins as the Tribe built its biggest lead of the game, 52-34. Longwood was unable to get closer than 14 points until the final minute of play, as W&M earned the triumph.

The Tribe will return to action when it plays at Howard on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Box Score