Box Score AUGUSTA, Ga. – Leading the Peach Belt Conference East Division, the Augusta Jaguars defeated the Georgia College Bobcats 84-76 on Wednesday night at Christenberry Fieldhouse. The Jaguars remained atop the PBC East Division with the win, despite a win by the Lander Bearcats tonight.
Senior Kariel Hutt led the scoring for the Jags (17-5, 10-3 PBC) with 22 points on the night. Augusta finished with 51.6 percent shooting from the floor and 50.0 from three-point range, thanks in part to sophomore Joshlyn Belcher, who tied her career high with six three-pointers. Belcher only missed one three-point attempt on the game and finished with 18 points.
A long three-pointer from senior Camille Gee put the Jags on the board after a strip and layup by the Bobcats (15-6, 7-5) opened the scoring for the game. Belcher, who leads the PBC in three-pointers, drained her first two attempts of the night to give Augusta a substantial lead to work with in the first period.
Strong shooting by Georgia College to open the second period saw the Jaguars lead reduced to just two at one point, before yet another three by Belcher and a couple of strong layups by Breonna O'Conner stretched the Augusta lead back to double digits.
The Jaguars rode a 15-2 run that gave them a crucial 40-25 lead heading into the half. Augusta held Georgia College to just 35.5 percent shooting from the floor and a cold 23.1 percent from three-point range.
Augusta came out slow in the second half, with two turnovers in the first minute of play. Luckily, only one of those resulted in points and the Jags continued their stellar shooting to maintain and extend their lead throughout the period. Belcher opened the final 10 minutes with her fourth three-pointer of the game, making her 4-of-5 from three-point range on the night and pushing the Jaguars lead to 21.
Georgia College dug into the lead in the early part of the fourth period despite the red-hot Belcher nailing her fifth three-pointer of the game. The Bobcats managed to shrink the Jaguars lead down to eight with 3:00 to play. Georgia College continued their comeback push into the final minute of play, closing the Jaguar lead to four. Clutch free-throw shooting at the end of the game by Augusta would allow the Jags to inch out the win 84-76.
Augusta hosts the annual Play 4Kay Pink-Out game in Christenberry Fieldhouse on Saturday, Feb. 6 to support the cancer center during their Peach Belt Conference matchup with the Armstrong Pirates at 1:30 p.m. Fans are encouraged to wear pink!
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