PRINCESS ANNE, Md. | The Florida A&M University women's basketball team played on fire from the opening tip and never looked back, defeating Maryland-Eastern Shore, 81-71 in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) game at the Hytche Center on Monday evening.
Monday's win ended a seven-game skid for Florida A&M (5-19 overall, 3-10 MEAC), also giving the club the most wins since the 2017-18 team went 8-24 overall and 4-12 in league play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Florida A&M came out hot and stayed that way, shooting 48.1 percent (26-of-64) from the floor and a blistering 52.3 percent (12-of-23) from distance, which allowed them to lead from start-to-finish for the first time since its November win at Johnson (Fla.) University.
The Lady Rattlers led, 20-18 after one, and used a 19-12 second quarter surge to build a 39-30 halftime lead.
FAMU outpaced UMES, 19-11 to take a 58-41 lead into the final frame.
The Lady Rattlers enjoyed their largest lead of the game at 65-51 with 7:49 left in the game, but the Hawks closed to 69-63 with just over five minutes left.
Corey Staples splashed a crucial three-pointer with 3:26 left, giving FAMU some breathing room at 73-65, when Morgan Mitchell cashed in a pair of charity tosses with 1:34 left to give the Rattlers a 10-point cushion at 77-67.
MONDAY'S LEADING LADIES
Alaina Rice led FAMU with 15 points, splashing five-of-seven 3-pointers for her team-leading tally. Corey Staples finished with 11 points, knocking down a crucial three-pointer late, while Asia Royster finished with 10 points. Jasmine Ballew pumped in 10 points to go with five rebounds, and Kailya Jackson added nine points.
Morgan Mitchell finished with seven points, including a pair of big free throws, while Shalaunda Burney-Robinson finished with six points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Adrienne Jones paced Maryland Eastern Shore (5-19, 2-9) with a game-high 25 points, while Mya Thomas added 12 points.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
> Not only did FAMU shoot markedly better from the floor than their season average (48.1 percent to 34.3 percent), they cut their turnovers down to 16 from their average of 25, flipping the script on UMES, scoring 26 points off turnovers Monday.
> Monday's result was the third Division I win for FAMU this season. In January they won back-to-back conference games against Coppin State and South Carolina State.
> Shalaunda Burney Robinson posted her eighth double-digit rebounding game Monday, with 14 boards. She had a career high 21 Saturday against Delaware State.
WHO'S GOT NEXT:
Florida A&M will close out their 2020 home schedule with two games this weekend, starting Saturday with Norfolk State and concluding next Monday against South Carolina State.
#Follow The Rattlers
For complete coverage of Florida A&M athletics, please follow the Rattlers on social media at @FAMUAthletics (Twitter), /FAMUAth (Facebook), @famuathletics (Instagram) or visit the official home of Florida A&M Athletics at famuathletics.com.
