CHARLESTON, S.C. - College of Charleston utilized a key 8-0 run midway through the third quarter to seize control of the Lowcountry matchup on Friday night as Charleston Southern was unable to overcome the crosstown rivals in the Buccaneer Field House, falling 79-70.

Tierra Steede posted another career performance for the Bucs (2-7) in CSU's final non-conference matchup of the 2019-20 season. The senior forward finished with 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting and added seven rebounds in the loss.

Junior guard Carmella Walker added 14 points and a pair of steals in the game, while Kelsie Ruff (12) and Sharita Godfrey (11) scored double-digits off the bench for the Bucs. Godfrey added a team-high nine rebounds and five assists in narrowly missing out on the double-double.

Deja Ford led visiting CofC (6-4) to the win with a game-high 24 points as the senior guard connected on six three-pointers in the contest. Tyler Collins added 17points, while Latrice Perkins had 10 points, five assists, and four steals.

First Quarter – College of Charleston 25, Charleston Southern 19
Charleston Southern jumped out to the early lead as Steede connected on the early layup, while Ruff connected on a three-pointer to put the Bucs ahead 5-0 early. The Cougars responded with nine consecutive points as Perkins and Collins chipped in a trio of layups before Ford connected on her first three-pointer to stake the Cougars to the 9-4 lead. The teams swapped baskets throughout the remainder of the quarter before CofC took advantage of a late Taylor Williams' three-pointer to build the six-point lead at the break.

Second Quarter – College of Charleston 36, Charleston Southern 35
A 11-0 run midway through the second quarter put the Buccaneers back in the lead as CSU took advantage of a multitude of Cougars' fouls to battle their way back into the game. Steede sparked the stretch with her first three-pointer of the game, while Ruff's free throw on the backend of the run put the Bucs ahead 33-29 with 2:29 remaining in the half. CofC scored seven of the final nine points of the half with Perkins' final basket putting the Cougars ahead by one at the half.

Third Quarter – College of Charleston 62, Charleston Southern 51
The Cougars utilized the strong play by Ford and Collins as the duo scored 21 of CofC's 26 points in the span in building the double-digit lead. Asia Smith scored the first basket out the break to put the Bucs back in the lead and Walker connected on a pair of free throws to knot the score at 39-39 before CofC took over. Ford's first three-pointer of the half swung the advantage back to the Cougars with 8:43 remaining in the quarter, while her second triple of the 10-minute period put CofC ahead 54-44 with 4:58 to play as CofC kept the pressure on throughout the frame.

Fourth Quarter – College of Charleston 79, Charleston Southern 70
CofC's lead reached as much as 18 with 2:46 remaining in the contest as Madison Taylor drilled a three-pointer to put the Cougars ahead 75-57. The Bucs mounted their comeback attempt with an 11-2 run that brought the game back to single-digits. Sha'Mya Leigh put together a pair of layups on back-to-back fast-break opportunities to spark the run, while Ahlea Myers and Steede added baskets in the paint to cut the score down to 75-65 with 42 seconds remaining. CSU fought to keep it within striking distance late on a Godfrey three-pointer and a pair of Myers free throws, but the Cougars put the game away from the free throw line in the win.

Inside the Statistics

• Charleston Southern shot 42.4% (25-of-59) from the floor, 33.3% (7-of-21) from the three-point line, and 81.3% (13-of-16) from the free throw line in the loss.
• College of Charleston was 46.8% (29-of-62) from the field, 41.9% (13-of-31) from the three-point line, and 50.0% (8-of-16) from the charity stripe in the win.
• CofC held the 40-31 rebounding advantage and put together the 9-7 edge in second chance points.
• The Cougars also held the 32-28 edge in points in the paint and 23-17 advantage in fast-break points.
• CofC held the 25-23 edge in points off turnovers and the Cougars outscored the CSU bench 16-15.

News & Notes

• Tierra Steede's scoring average of 20.5 points over the two games marked a career-high for the senior forward as she connected on 59.3% (16-of-27) from the floor over the two games this week.
• Steede also averaged 6.0 rebounds over the two games in her first action of the 2019-20 season.
• Carmella Walker's double-digit scoring effort was her fifth of the season and second 14-point game in a row in the loss.
• Kelsie Ruff has scored double-digits in four of her last five games, including tonight's 12 point effort against the Cougars.
• Sharita Godfrey put together her seventh double-digit scoring effort of the season as she scored 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
• Godfrey added her sixth game with at least eight rebounds this season as she put together another nine rebound effort on Friday evening.
• The Bucs hit the 40.0% shooting mark for the fourth consecutive game as the Bucs hit 42.4% (25-of-59) from the floor against the Cougars.
• The game also marked CSU's sixth consecutive game with double-digit steals.
• The Bucs hit at least 80.0% of their free throw attempts for the third time this season.
• CSU hit a season-high seven three-pointers against the Cougars.
• CSU fell to 11-46 all-time in the series against College of Charleston.
• Friday's loss ended CSU's two-game winning streak.

Up Next
Charleston Southern takes eight days off to celebrate the Christmas holiday before jumping into Big South Conference play on the road on December 28. The Bucs open conference play at USC Upstate at the Hodge Center at 2 p.m. with the game set to tipoff on ESPN+.