Joneiqua Gary hit six three-pointers on her way to a career-high 21 points off the bench, while Andrea Jones scored 12 of her 19 points in the first four-plus minutes of the second half during a 26-0 run as Mount Olive extended its winning streak to four with an 82-46 victory over Converse in Conference Carolinas women's basketball Saturday at Kornegay Arena. The Trojans scored the last 10 points of the first half and the first 16 points of the second half, the first six points after intermission by Jones.

The win assures Mount Olive of at least a one-game lead over Barton in the Conference Carolinas East Division standings. The Trojans host their archrival Tuesday.

Mount Olive (17-5, 11-2 Conference Carolinas) held a 13-point late in the first half when the scoring run began. Jones started the scoring run with a three-pointer with 3:04 left and Destinee Webb scored the last four points before halftime on fastbreak layups off of steals, the second layup on Kirstin Mobley's 40-foot pass to Webb with 35 seconds left to give the Trojans a 39-16 halftime lead.

Jones, who was held to five points in the first half, hit a pair of layups and a jumper less than two minutes into the second half to extend the Trojans' lead to 45-16. Tamara Nesmith converted a three-point play and Jones went on to score the final six points of the run on fastbreak baskets, the last two on her own steals as Mount Olive built a 55-16 advantage with 15:37 left to play.

After Converse (3-20, 3-11) ended the run on a basket by Katy Vaughan, Gary answered with a three as the margin reached the 40-point range for the first time. Gary's final three-pointer of the game - her fourth of the second half - helped give Mount Olive its biggest lead of the game at 74-32 with 3:50 remaining. Freshman Shanice Pringle knocked down her first collegiate three-pointer with 57 seconds left for the Trojans' final points.

Mount Olive went to its bench for the latter part of the second half. Jasmine McDonald was the only Trojan starter to play more than 26 minutes.

Mount Olive jumped out to a 7-0 lead to start the game before baskets by Vaughan and Avery Winchester helped Converse pull within a field goal. McDonald's three-point play ignited a 16-1 run for Mount Olive as the Trojans built a 25-8 advantage with 7:57 left in the first half. The margin stayed in double digits for the remainder of the game.

Jasmine Middlebrooks hit 4-of-4 free throws in the first half for Converse and the Valkyries got as close as 29-16 on Samira Gillcrese's layup with 3:24 remaining. But Mount Olive held Converse scoreless for a span of nearly eight minutes of game time to pull away.

Trojan head coach Wendy Lee says the final outcome doesn't do justice to the effort by Converse.

"Converse is a scrappy team and they kept battling to the end," said Lee, who is in her 12th season as head coach at Mount Olive. "Converse is having a tough season, but they're very well coached and they have some talent on that team. They're just a player or two from turning things around."

Gary has started in only two of 22 games this season, but she says she enjoys her role coming in off the bench.

"I feel like it's my role to provide a spark off the bench," said Gary, a 5-7 sophomore point guard from Norfolk, Va. "I try to bring some energy onto the floor." Gary hit her six three-pointers during a stretch of eight attempts. She was 6-for-11 from beyond the arc for the game.

McDonald recorded a double-double for Mount Olive with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Webb added eight points, five assists and a career-high seven steals. Jones also dished out five assists and shared game-high honors with a career-matching seven steals. Nesmith led the Trojans with six assists, while Ty Wallace pulled down a career-high nine rebounds.

Amber Mooney led Converse with 11 points off the bench. Winchester added seven points and seven rebounds, while Middlebrooks tied for game-high honors with six assists.

Despite the hype for Tuesday's "Battle of the East," Gary says her team was not looking past Converse.

"We know we have to play every game like it's the most important game," said Gary. "Today's game was the only game that mattered. We don't look at teams' records. This game was our most important game. Now our next game becomes our most important game."

Regarding her personal performance, when asked after her post-game interview if she wanted to know how many points she ended up with, she waved her hand and said, "No, that's okay."

Tuesday night will be "Blackout Night" as Mount Olive plays host to Barton in the Battle of the East in a women's and men's basketball doubleheader at Kornegay Arena. Trojan fans are asked to wear black for the game. Black MOC Battle of the East t-shirts are for sale on campus for $10, with proceeds going towards Make-a-Wish. Fans may also purchase a shirt at the gate and receive free admission to the games.

The women's game tips off at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.