Wesleyan drops 66-56 hoops decision to Methodist women

Rocky Mount, NC - Behind an 11-2 run in the final four minutes of play, the Methodist University women's basketball team was able to pick up a 66-56 win over North Carolina Wesleyan on Tuesday night in Everett Gymnasium.  With the victory, the Monarchs are now 10-5 on the season, 5-3 in USA South play, while the Battling Bishops drop to 4-10 overall with a 2-5 league mark.

In the first half, Wesleyan jumped out to a seven-point lead at 15-8 with 9:13 remaining. The Monarchs, however, out-scored the Bishops 21-10 the rest of the way to forge a 29-25 halftime advantage.

The second half saw Methodist extend its lead to double figures at 46-35 with 12:05 left in regulation; but behind the stellar play of freshman T'Keya Holloway and sophomore Desiree' Driver, the Bishops put together a 12-0 run that gave them a 47-46 advantage at the 8:04 mark. Driver kicked off the run with two baskets down low, while Holloway finished it with eight straight points of her own.

Methodist held a slim 55-53 lead a little over four minutes later, and unfortunately, the Bishops went cold from the floor from that point on. The Monarchs proceeded to score seven straight points to go up nine with 1:13 remaining, and Wesleyan would not recover.

Holloway finished with 17 points to lead all players, while Driver completed the double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. NCWC's Essence Chambers had 12 points and Gretchen Tobias 12 rebounds in the losing effort.

For Methodist, Dezzire Gilliard had a team-high 15 points, and Adriana Wilson and Dawn Sanderson chipped in 14 points apiece.  The Monarchs were able to score 25 points off of 26 Bishop turnovers, which proved to be the difference in the game.

Wesleyan returns to action on Thursday at Averett University. Game time is slated for 7:30 p.m. in Danville, VA.