ROCK HILL, S.C. -
Catherine Alben scored 26 points, but that was not enough, as the Charleston Southern women's basketball team dropped a conference-road game to the Winthrop Eagles on Wednesday night by a 54-47 score.
This loss snapped the longest winning streak that the Buccaneers (10-13, 6-4 in conf.) have had in 20 years. It also snapped a five-game winning streak that the Buccaneers had against Winthrop. For Alben, her 26 points marked the second time that she has scored over 25 points in a game this season. She also tied for the team lead in rebounds with seven along with
Alaina Nettles.
After scoring the game's first basket on their first possession, the Buccaneers went the next four minutes without scoring a point, until a steal from Nettles led to a fastbreak layup the other way for Alben. Winthrop (12-11, 6-4 in conf.) pushed the lead to eight points with under three minutes left in the first quarter, but the Buccaneers fought back with a 9-0 run to end the opening quarter.
In the second quarter, the Buccaneers continued to struggle to make shots, as three free throws from both
Taylor Caldwell and Alben were the only points that Charleston Southern had until
Keshunti Nichols made a layup with 3:31 to go in the first half. Charleston Southern made just two field goals in the second quarter and had just nine points, but they only held Winthrop to seven points to take a 22-19 lead into the locker room.
In the third quarter, the Eagles were able to find success, outscoring the Buccaneers 19-12 while going 6-11 from the field. They were 10/22 from the field in the second half, but the Buccaneers did not allow a three pointer, as the Eagles were 0/8 from deep.
Alben was 10/21 on the night from the field and 4/9 from three; however, the rest of the team shot just 8/32 overall and 1/9 from beyond the arc. The Eagles pulled down 14 offensive rebounds, which led to 16 second chance points. They went to the free throw line 20 times, making 16 from the strike.
The Buccaneers are back at home this weekend, as they look to complete the season sweep of the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs on Saturday. Tipoff will be at 2:00 PM and will be streamed on ESPN+.
