Wake Forest University
Clemson
Clemson Rolls Past Wake Forest, 76-53
2/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 15, 2007
CLEMSON, S.C. - Clemson used a big first half, jumping out to a 22-3 lead, to roll past Wake Forest, 76-53, Thursday evening at Littlejohn Coliseum.
With the loss, the Demon Deacons drop to 9-16 overall and 0-11. Clemson improves to 12-14 overall, 4-7 in conference play.
Sophomore Yolanda Lavender led Wake Forest with 16 points on 6-of-23 shooting. Classmates Corinne Groves and Alex Tchangoue added nine and seven points, respectively.
Freshman Courteney Morris pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds, while junior Christen Brown followed with a career-high nine boards.
The Tigers delivered the knockout punch early, using a 20-1 run in the game's opening minutes. Clemson held Wake Forest without a field goal for a stretch of almost eight minutes, building an 18-point margin in the process.
Groves' jumper at 19:26 tied the game at 2-2, but Clemson followed with 14 unanswered points. A free throw from freshman Mekia Valentine ended the scoring drought, but the Deacons did not hit another field goal until a Groves bucket at 11:53. By that time, the Tigers were in total control with a 22-5 lead.
Clemson shot 52.4 percent (22-of-42) to build a 52-23 halftime lead. The Tigers committed just two turnovers in the half, compared to seven by the Deacs. Wake was as cold shooting as Clemson was hot. The Deacons went just 10-for-38 (26.3 percent) from the floor, including 1-for-11 from three-point range, in the first period.
In the second half, Wake Forest out-scored Clemson 30-24. The Demon Deacons needed a 13-2 run late in the period to cut the deficit to under 30 points. Brown scored six unanswered points during the run.
For the game, Wake shot 27.8 percent (20-of-72) and was 3-for-25 from beyond the arc. Clemson shot 41.7 percent (30-of-72) and went 8-for-20 from three-point range.
Clemson out-rebounded Wake 40-33 and won the turnover battle, 11-16.
The Tigers were led by Lele Hardy who scored a game-high 22 points. Hardy also had a team-best 10 rebounds.
Wake Forest returns to action on Sunday when it hosts Boston College at 3 p.m. The game is the Deacons' 3-point Attack Against Breast Cancer. Fans can pledge to donate money for every three-pointer that Wake Forest makes. Proceeds will benefit Friends for an Earlier Breast Cancer Test.
