CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern outscored visiting Virginia University of Lynchburg 51-21 over the final 20 minutes of play as the Buccaneers topped the Dragons in the non-conference matchup in the Buc Dome on Saturday afternoon, 92-55.

CSU (1-6) was paced by Kelsie Ruff's 17 points, while Tyra Wright added a career-high 16 and six rebounds over 18 minutes of play as the Buccaneers dominated the Dragons following a close first half. CSU held the 50-8 advantage on points in the paint and 33-11 edge in points off turnovers in turning the Saturday contest into a rout in their first home win of the 2019-20 season.

The Buccaneers utilized a 23-point run spanning part of the third and fourth quarters in taking advantage of 16 VUL turnovers over the span. Ruff and Wright scored 12 points apiece over the second half on their way to pulling away in the first ever matchup between the two programs.

Ruff added nine assists and six rebounds in her third consecutive double-digit scoring game, while Asia Smith (14) and Sharita Godfrey (13) were also in double-digits for the Bucs. Smith added her first collegiate double-double with a game-high 12 rebounds (seven offensive) as the Bucs held the 65-36 rebounding edge in the game.
 
Jayda Holder paced Virginia Lynchburg with a team-high 16 points on 4-of-5 three-point shooting off the bench. DaMya Harris added a trio of three-pointers and six rebounds for 13 points in the loss.

First Quarter – Charleston Southern 21, Virginia Lynchburg 18
Sharita Godfrey's early three-pointer created a 7-0 run as the Buccaneer seized control in the first quarter. The margin remained at seven on two separate occasions as Smith and Sha'Mya Leigh both connected on short jumpers to keep the score at 13-6 with 3:22 remaining in the opening quarter. VUL brought the game back to within one possession at the break with LynShawn Ebon's three-pointer with 36 seconds remaining to send the game into the second quarter with CSU leading by three.

Second Quarter – Charleston Southern 41, Virginia Lynchburg 34
CSU took the ball inside on their first two possessions of the quarter with Wright and Carmella Walker both scoring layups to stretch the lead back out to seven. The CSU lead reached double-digits for the first time in the game with 1:15 to play in the first half on a Tori Gittens three-pointer to put CSU ahead 39-28. DaMya Harris put in the final points of the half, answering a Jasmine Blackmon layup with a three-pointer on the VUL fast-break to send the teams into the half with CSU leading 41-34.

Third Quarter – Charleston Southern 58, Virginia Lynchburg 45
Kelsie Ruff scored six of CSU's 17 points in the quarter, while Asia Smith and Tyra Wright both came up with key baskets to help the Buccaneers start to pull away from the Dragons out of the break. CSU's lead first hit double-digits in the quarter on a Wright layup with 5:48 remaining to put the score at 49-38. VUL cut the lead down to seven late in the frame on a Jayda Holder layup, but Ruff and Godfrey (twice) both scored in the paint over the final 101 seconds of the quarter to put the Bucs ahead by 13 heading into the final 10 minutes of play.

Fourth Quarter – Charleston Southern 92, Virginia Lynchburg 55
The Bucs scored the first 17 points of the fourth quarter and held VUL scoreless for nearly four minutes on their way to building an insurmountable lead. The margin hit 30 points following the 23-0 run with Wright putting in a pair of short-range baskets to cap the stretch and give CSU the 75-45 lead with 6:41 remaining. The Bucs defense took over late as CSU held VUL off the scoreboard over the final 2:07 in the game in closing out the win.

Inside the Statistics

• Charleston Southern was 40-of-81 (49.4%) from the floor, 2-of-15 (13.3%) from the three-point line, and 10-of-21 (47.6%) from the free throw line in the win.
• Virginia Lynchburg was 17-of-69 (24.6%) overall, 9-of-30 (30.0%) from the three-point line, and 12-of-17 (70.6%) from the free throw line in the loss.
• The Buccaneers dominated the battle in the paint with the 65-36 edge in rebounds and the 50-8 advantage on points in the paint.
• CSU posted 25 assists on 40 made field goals on Saturday, while tying their season-high with 14 steals.
• Three different Buccaneer players had at least eight rebounds in the game, with seven of the nine CSU players pulling down at least six boards in the win.
• Kelsie Ruff (9) and Ahlea Myers (6) combined for 15 of CSU's 25 assists in the game.
• The Bucs took advantage of 28 VUL turnovers on their way to scoring 33 points.

News & Notes

• All nine Buccaneers who dressed out scored in the game, with eight scoring in the first quarter in CSU's win over the Dragons.
• Kelsie Ruff continued her torrid scoring pace with her third consecutive game with at least 17 points.
• Sharita Godfrey recorded her fifth double-digit scoring effort of the season and second in a row with 13 points. It was also her fifth game this season with at least six rebounds.
• Asia Smith's 14-point, 12-rebound double-double was the Bucs' first of the season and CSU's first double-digit rebound effort in 2019.
• Tyra Wright's 16 points was a career-high effort as the freshman center scored on 8-of-11 shots in the game.
• Asia Smith's 14 points capped her first collegiate double-digit scoring effort.
• The Bucs' 49.4% field goal percentage, 65 rebounds, 25 assists, and five blocked shots were all season-highs.
• The Bucs' 14 steals on Saturday afternoon marked the third consecutive game CSU has recorded 14 takeaways and their fourth consecutive double-digit steal effort.
• CSU has forced opponents to turn the ball over at least 20 times in each of the last three games.
• CSU improves to 1-0 all-time in the series against VUL.

Up Next
Charleston Southern takes a week off for final exams, before returning back to the court for a December 16 home matchup against Columbia (S.C.) in the Buccaneer Field House. Tipoff on ESPN+ is set for 7 p.m.