Basketball Defeats Middle Georgia State 56-55

The Brenau basketball team edged out Middle Georgia State 56-55 in non-conference action on Monday in Cochran, Georgia.

The Golden Tigers struggled offensively in both the first and second quarters as the team found themselves down 25-12 with just over two minutes remaining in the half. Kaylyn Brooks stole an errant pass and found Jasmine Knight for a layup, and then Knight scored on another driving layup to cut the deficit to 25-16. Just before the intermission, Autumn Dodson found Jamie Bunting for a three-pointer to close the quarter with a 7-0 run to make the score 25-19.

The Golden Tigers opened the third quarter on an 11-2 run as Autumn Dodson scored five consecutive points, then Knight, Lia Thomas and Ashanti Brown each scored layups to give their squad a 30-27 lead.

In the fourth quarter, two free throws by Knight gave Brenau a 52-44 lead, their largest of the game. Both teams continued to trade baskets throughout the period until the Knights' Kianna Delas nailed a three pointer to cut the deficit to two with 18 seconds remaining. After a Middle Georgia foul, Madison Phillips made the first free throw to make the score 55-52, but missed the second shot. However, an offensive rebound by Lia Thomas clinched the game as the junior was fouled and then hit both foul shots to help her team escape with a 56-55 win.

"This was a really tough game for us," said head coach Kris Stewart. "We couldn't find our offensive rhythm in the first half and we were fortunate to have a run before the half to keep the score close. We had two crucial three-pointers from Jamie Bunting and Madison Phillips which boosted our offense".

"Jasmine Knight and Lia Thomas really rebounded well for us tonight which shows their overall effort on a night where we really struggled in other facets of the game."

Knight led Brenau with 18 points and 15 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season. Thomas added 14 points and 12 rebounds for her second double-double, while Phillips added seven points and five rebounds.

Dexshalyn Polite led all scorers with 26 points.

With the win, Brenau (18-6 overall, 12-5 AAC) ties the school record of 18 wins set in 2016-17. The squad looks ahead to an Appalachian Athletic Conference contest versus Point (Ga.) University (17-8 overall, 14-6 AAC) on Wednesday at 5:30 in West Point, Georgia.