Box Score

WILMINGTON, N.C. - Western Carolina women's basketball (2-3) dropped game one of the UNCW Thanksgiving Classic falling to Eastern Kentucky (2-2) 71-62 Friday in Trask Coliseum.

After a quick start to open the game, Western Carolina cooled off and Eastern Kentucky heated up. The Catamounts had no answer for the perimeter shot as the Colonels connected on eight three pointers.

Western Carolina did come back from a 20-point deficit in the second half to only fall to EKU by nine.

Tied at seven, EKU used a 7-0 run to take the lead and never relinquish it. Western Carolina went on two costly scoring droughts in the first half, from 13:47 to 8:51 and then again from 5:49 to 3:09. The Catamounts also struggled from the free throw line only hitting 7-of-12 in the first half.

The Catamounts improved its free throw shooting in the final minute hitting 5-of-6 to cut the EKU lead to 10, 40-30, with 8.1 seconds left. The Colonels' Mariah Massengill hit a lay-up with 1.1 second left on the clock to put EKU up 42-30 at the half.

EKU opened the second half with another 7-0 run to pad its lead. Western Carolina halted the EKU run off a pair of field goals by Justin Taylor and Makensey Campbell but just like all game EKU had an answer.

WCU did make a mini run of it in the final four minutes cutting into the EKU lead with 2:53 left in the game. Trailing by 17, 60-57, with 4:24 left WCU went on a 10-2 run to twice cut it down to nine - the smallest point margin of the second half. The Catamounts trimmed it to nine when EKU's Head Coach Chrissy Roberts was called for a technical and Taylor hit a pair of free throws.

EKU's Alexus Cooper's lay-up with 1:12 left in the game all but iced the game despite the Catamounts' going 4-for-4 from the free throw in the in the final minute.

Taylor scored in double figures for the fifth time this season, and 10th straight dating back to the 2013-14 season, with 15 points. Freshman guard Ace Easter came off the bench to score a career-high 14 points becoming the second Catamount freshman to score in double figures this season. Fellow freshman Sherae Bonner opened the season with back-to-back double figure scoring performances.

Michaela Hunter led EKU with 20 points. She was one of three EKU players to score in double figures with Massengill and Jasmine Henshaw each scoring 10.

EKU shot a scoring 49.2 percent from the field and Western Carolina shot 32.2 percent. EKU also got 18 points off turnovers and 16 second chance points. EKU also had a season-high six blocks in the game. Western Carolina did get 31 points off the bench.

Western Carolina will play host UNC Wilmington at 2 p.m. Saturday to complete play in the UNCW Thanksgiving Classic.