Late charge pushes #15 FMU past Lander 98-80

GREENWOOD, SC – Shannon Singleton-Bates recorded a double-double with 22 points and 13 rebounds and sparked a game-ending 36-17 run as 15th-ranked Francis Marion University defeated Lander University 98-80, Monday evening (Feb. 16) in Peach Belt Conference women’s basketball action at Horne Arena.

Francis Marion wins for the 13th consecutive outing, sweeps the season series from Lander, and improves to 22-1 overall and 15-1 in the Peach Belt, while maintaining its two-game lead in the conference standings. The Lady Bearcats fall to 15-8 and 10-6.

Following Singleton-Bates was senior forward Creshenda Singletary with 18 points, 14 of which came in the opening half. Junior guard Eboni Fields added 14, while Shana Franks scored 13 points and Jennifer Dyer 11.

Francis Marion, leading the nation with 94 points per game, hit 33 of 40 free throws with Singletary making eight of 10. Lander made 29 of 40 charity tosses in the marathon game.

Sophomore center Shannon McKever posted her 10th double-double of the season for Lander as she totaled 11 points and 12 rebounds, while blocking seven shots. Brittni Johnson led the Lady Bearcats with 15 points, while Brianna Webb added 12 points.

Lander opened the game with an 11-2 spurt that grew to a 15-4 lead. Despite missing 17 of their first 19 field goal attempts, the Patriots stayed close by making free throws. Eventually FMU heated up from the floor, putting together a 22-4 run that turned the early deficit into a 26-19 Francis Marion advantage.

Singleton-Bates scored inside to give the Patriots their first lead, 21-19, with 10:33 left and Dyer capped the run with a three-pointer for the 26-19 advantage at the 8:50 mark.

The Lady Bearcats closed a 34-26 deficit to 34-31 with 3:23 to go in the half. Francis Marion responded with a 10-4 run for a 44-35 halftime lead. FMU held Lander to only 27 percent shooting (10-for-37) over the opening 20 minutes.

Fields sank a trio of three-pointers to extend Francis Marion’s lead to 60-49 in the second half. However, Webb rallied Lander as the Lady Bearcats scored 14 of the game's next 16 points to take a 63-62 lead at the 10:24 mark following a lay-up by Johnson.

Singleton-Bates then scored the game's next six points giving Francis Marion a lead its would not relinquish.

Franks put in a missed free throw to cap an 11-2 run that gave the visitors a 73-65 lead with 7:10 to go. The Patriots would extend their lead into double digits and FMU made its last 10 free throws over the final 3:30 to seal the key road win.

For the game, Francis Marion hit 30 of 78 shots from the floor (38 percent), 33 of 40 free throws (83 percent), and five of 14 from behind the 3-point line (36 percent). Lander made 24 of 73 shots, 29 of 40 free throws (73 percent), and three of 14 from behind the arc (21 percent).
Francis Marion will play host to Augusta State University on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

Michael G. Hawkins