Big Second Half Leads Lions Over Brevard

MARS HILL, N.C.-- A strong start to the second half and hot shooting after halftime sparked Mars Hill to a 63-52 victory over Brevard in South Atlantic Conference action Saturday afternoon at Stanford Arena.

The Lions outscored the Tornados 23-10 over the first nine minutes of the second half and shot 48 percent from the floor (12-of-25) in the half to earn the victory. Mars Hill was paced by Armeka Booker's 23 points and 12 rebounds, which was good enough for the sophomore's fifth double-double of the season. Shelby Wolfe scored 19 points for Brevard on 9-of-15 shooting. The game was the Lions' annual fundraiser event for "Play 4Kay", which raises awareness for women's cancers. Mars Hill improved to 5-15 overall and 2-10 in SAC play. Brevard is now 5-15 overall and 3-9 in conference play.

Kristen Metcalf provided a spark off the bench for the Lions with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-5 from long range. Autumn Ward added eight points and nine rebounds, while Kelsey Espinosa dished out a career-high six assists to go along with four points and 11 rebounds. MHC shot 42.1 percent overall from the field (24-of-57).

Michaela Watkins scored 17 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out six assists for Brevard. Tuccoa Brackett added 13 points and seven boards. Brevard shot 36.2 percent from the field (21-of-58).

Brevard led by as much as 11 in the first half at 22-11 with 9:35 to play before the Lions began to chip away at the lead. Four points by Ward and two of Katie Buckner's six points cut the deficit to five with 6:48 to play. The Tornados pushed the lead back to as much as nine, before MHC closed the half with a six-point run. Buckets by Taylor Tate, Ward and Buckner closed the halftime score to 29-26.

The Lion bench scored nine points in the first half to help make up the slow start for MHC. The Lions held a 22-0 advantage in points off the bench, with Buckner, Metcalf and Tate providing the scoring edge for MHC.

After an old-fashioned three-point play by Brackett to open the half made the score 32-26 in favor of Brevard, the Lions ripped off an 11-3 run to take their first lead of the second half. Mars Hill spread the ball around in the run, with five different Lions contributing points during that stretch before a Metcalf trey gave the Lions a 37-34 lead with 16:04 to play.

A three by Watkins tied the score and momentarily halted the Mars Hill run, but the Lions stormed back with a 12-4 surge. Seven points by Booker, a three by Metcalf and a pair of free throws by Buckner provided the scoring as MHC took a 47-39 lead with 11:00 to play. That run capped off a stretch of play where the Lions outscored the Tornados 29-10 over a span of 14:30 of game time.

The Lion lead would hover around eight before a 10-0 run put the game out of reach. Metcalf hit a trey and a jumper during the run, while Booker added three free throws and Espinosa added two points to push the lead to 61-44 with 2:10 to play. Brevard would get no closer than the 63-52 final margin.

Mars Hill will face travel to Carson-Newman for a 6:00 p.m. tip-off this Wednesday, Feb. 13.