CHARLESTON, S.C - The Buccaneers of Charleston Southern defeated the Flames of Liberty at a score 54-51. Tonight was Charleston Southern's first victory over the Flames in over a decade. That win coming on Jan. 18, 1999. The win improves the Bucs' record to 13-14 (7-7, BSC) and the loss drops Liberty's record to 18-9 (12-2, BSC).

The Buccaneers led the entire contest, from wire to wire. The Bucs jumped out to a quick 8-1 lead, and held Liberty without a field goal for the first 4:10 of game time.

In addition to playing tough zone defense against a bigger squad, Charleston Southern was also turning over the Flames of Liberty in the early going. They forced 17 turnovers while only committing five of their own. Valuing the ball allowed the Bucs to attempt 12 more shots than the Flames in the first frame. Katie Tull also added 13 points toward the cause.

CSU went into half time with the 33-21 lead over the Flames of Liberty. The 21 points allowed in the first half was tied for the second lowest point total in a half for the Flames this season.

The lead would hover around ten points for the Buccaneers for most of the second half but the Flames would resurge and cut the deficit to single digits with about ten minutes to play.

Liberty would continue to narrow the margin throughout the second half and with a minute to play got the lead down to three points.

After a Liberty foul and a made free throw by Terry, Lakeitha Alston made a huge play with under 30 seconds to play. She hedged on a screen and drew the charge on the Liberty guard, giving Charleston Southern possession of the ball with a four-point advantage.

The most crucial stat of the game was turnover margin, which was +15 in favor of Charleston Southern. The Bucs only committed 11 turnovers while inducing their opponent to commit 26.

Tonight was Charleston Southern's first victory over Liberty since a 66-60 win Jan. 18, 1999 at Buccaneer Field House. In that game, CSU overcame a 14-point first-half deficit to beat Liberty. Prior to tonight's win, Charleston Southern had lost 11 straight games to Liberty inside the friendly confines of the Buc Dome.

Leading Charleston Southern was Kelsey Wasmer. She was just shy of another double-double with 16 points and nine boards. Also in double figures was sophomore guard Helen Terry who had 11 points and four huge steals for the Buccaneers coming off the bench. Her incessant ball pressure on defense helped force errant passes from the Flames that turned into turnovers.

Leading the Flames in the losing effort was Devon Brown who had 19 points. Pulling down an amazing 21 boards was Avery Warley who also added nine points.

After tonight's game Katie Tull sits only eight made three pointers behind her own single season Big South record for three pointers made of 100. The Buccaneers have at least three games remaining, including Big South Tournament play.

Charleston Southern will play the third leg of their final home stand on Friday, Mar. 4 against Coastal Carolina. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 7 p.m. They will then face Winthrop at home on Mar. 7 to close out Big South regular season play.

Video Highlights

Coach Goodenough Postgame Interview