Feb. 15, 2014

Box Score |   

CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Junior Justin Taylor came off the bench to score a career-high 25 points in Western Carolina women's basketball's (11-14, 5-9 Southern

Conference) come-back effort, falling short 66-61 to Elon (12-12, 8-5 SoCon) Saturday in the Ramsey Center in the Catamounts' Play4Kay game.

Western Carolina attempted a Herculean effort comeback on the hot hand of Taylor. Trailing by 10, 63-53 with 2:43 left in the game, Taylor scored eight unanswered points, a pair of three pointers and a layup, to pull the Catamounts within two points, 63-61, with 10 seconds left in the game.

The Catamounts, in that two minute stretch, could have tied the game when Rena Wakama was fouled and went to the free throw line for a 1-and-1. Wakama missed the front-end of the free throw attempts and Elon got the rebound.

Leading by two, with 10 seconds left, Elon's Sam Coffer was fouled and drained both free throws to ice the game.

Elon led 33-27 at the half, and scored the first four points of the second half. to lead by 10, 37-27 with 18:14 left. Taylor scored seven straight points to trim the Elon lead to three, 37-34. The Phoenix kept a grasp on the lead until the Catamounts went on a mini run starting with a pair of free throws by Alex Abraham.

After Abraham's free throws, at 15:19, cut the Elon lead to three, Taylor was at it again scoring five straight points. Her three-pointer, at the 14:21 mark, gave Western Carolina its first lead of the second half, 41-39. Ali Lane's jumper extended the Catamount lead to four, 43-39.

Elon answered with 17 unanswered points to reclaim the lead and never trailed again. Western Carolina was held scoreless for over seven minutes to allow the Phoenix to build a double-digit lead.

The game looked to be well in hand for Elon, but Western Carolina had other ideas. Trailing by 13 points, 56-43 with 6:35 left, the Catamounts went on a 7-to-1 run to trim the Phoenix lead to single digits, 57-50 off a three-pointer by Taylor. The run by Western Carolina, in the latter half of the second half, set up the excitement in the final two minutes of the game.

The first half was a duel for both Western Carolina and Elon. Both teams traded the lead and tied the game for the fifth time, 13, with 10:12 left on the clock. The score was tied for a sixth time, 15 all, on a pair of free throws by Elon's Shannen Cochrahamm.

A seventh tie was courtesy off free throws by Lindsay Simpson who tied the game at 18 and gave the Catamounts the lead, 19-18, with 4:49 left in the half. A lay-up and a free throw by Coffer gave Elon the lead back, 21-19 and the Phoenix held the lead until the half.

Western Carolina cut the Phoenix lead to one, 25-24, on a three-pointer by Makensey Campbell with 2:11 left. The Phoenix went on an 8-2 run, in the final two minutes, to take a 33-27 lead at the half.

Taylor's 25 points is the most for a Catamount player since teammate Simpson scored 25 points against Furman in 2013. It is also the fourth time this season a Western Carolina player has scored 20 or more points.

Elon had four players score in double figures led by Jennifer Rhodes and Zara Stephenson's 11 points. Kelsey Harris and Coffer added 10.

Western Carolina out-rebounded Elon 47-44 and ripped down 23 offensive boards. The Catamounts got 47 points off the bench. WCU also had just 11 turnovers and forced Elon to commit 19.

Elon shot 45.1 percent from the field to Western Carolina's 32.4 percent. After Western Carolina held Elon to 0-1 from the three point line in the first half, the Phoenix was 5-of-10 from behind the three point arch in the second half. The Phoenix also earned 26 trips to the free throw line, hitting 14-of-26, to the Catamounts' 11 trips, going 6-for-11.

Western Carolina will complete its two-game home stand Monday hosting UNCG Monday at 7 p.m.