MOUNT OLIVE (Nov. 16) – Junior transfer
Savannah McAfee scored a game-high 26 points on Saturday afternoon, as the University of Mount Olive women's basketball program collected a 63-46 victory over Morris in the home-opener at Kornegay Arena.
With the win, the Trojans improve to 1-1 this season and will return to non-conference play next Wednesday with a matchup against Virginia Union set for Nov. 20 at 5:30 p.m. Meanwhile, the Hornets drops to 1-5 overall after playing a pair of Division II programs in their last two contests.
McAfee finished with 26 points after shooting 10-of-14 from the field with seven rebounds, one assist, and one steal in 31 minutes on the court. Senior
Alexis Durham tallied eight points, five rebounds, five assists, and four steals in 29 minutes. The freshman duo of
Destiny Thompson and
Jerin Truesdale each contributed six points in the win on Saturday. Junior
Jada Priebe grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds while playing 24 minutes off the bench.
In the first quarter, Mount Olive quickly established a 9-2 advantage behind seven points from McAfee and a perfect three-of-three shooting. Morris countered by scoring seven of the next nine points to cut into the deficit before Thompson hit a three-pointer in the final seconds to put UMO ahead by a 15-11 margin. The Trojans stretched the lead to 20-12 in the opening minutes of the second before both sides went scoreless for the next two-plus minutes. UMO started a 12-2 run at the 5:42 mark to extend the advantage to 32-14 before eventually taking a 35-17 lead into the break.
Durham and McAfee combined for eight points in the initial six minutes of the third to build a 43-21 lead before the sides traded baskets to end the quarter, 49-29. The Hornets battled back in the final quarter after cutting the deficit to 51-38 at the 6:12 mark before the Trojans closed out the contest with a 12-6 run to capture a 63-46 win.
The Trojans finished the game shooting 28.4 percent (19-of-67) from the floor and converted 18-of-28 (64.3 percent) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, the Hornets shot at a 21.0 clip (13-of-62) from the field and made 20-of-35 (57.1 percent) from the charity stripe. Morris finished with a 61-49 rebounding advantage with 17 second-chance points. Mount Olive scored 20 points in the paint and totaled 21 points off 30 forced turnovers.
Mount Olive returns to the court on Wednesday, Nov. 20, when it travels to face Virginia Union in a non-conference game at 5:30 p.m.
