GAME INFORMATION
Score: Montevallo 76, Mississippi College 64
Records: Montevallo (4-3 overall, 1-0 GSC) | Mississippi College (3-2 overall, 0-1 GSC)
Location: Clinton, Miss. (A.E. Wood Coliseum)
Date: November 27, 2018
Montevallo Starters: Nautika Philpot, Kourtnie Smith, Aaliyah Rice, Paige Ward, Kiya Sain
Mississippi College Starters: Zan Ratcliffe, Zariah Matthews, Kaitlyn Thompson, Coco Hobson, Emery Wilson
GAME NOTES
· Head Coach Gary Van Atta had his 500th career win with tonight's defeat of the Choctaws.
· Nautika Philpot led the way for the Falcons with 24 points in the game. Philpot was 9-of-15 from the field and also went 4-of-7 from long range. Philpot also dished out a game-high six assists.
· Kourtnie Smith registered her fourth double-double of the season with a 17 point and 14 rebound effort. Smith was 5-of-8 from the field and went 7-of-9 from the free throw line.
· Aaliyah Rice was the third Falcon to score in double figures and had 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
TEAM LEADERS
MONTEVALLO
Points: Nautika Philpot (24)
Rebounds: Kourtnie Smith (14)
Assists: Nautika Philpot (6)
MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE
Points: Lauran Sheriff (20)
Rebounds: Kristen Thompson (7)
Assists: Zan Ratcliffe (5)
RECAP
Clinton, Miss. – The University of Montevallo women's basketball team defeated Mississippi College 76-64 to kick off the conference portion of their schedule and helped earn head coach Gary Van Atta his 500th career victory as a women's basketball coach.
The Falcons are now 4-3 overall on the season and 1-0 in Gulf South Conference play.
Montevallo dominated in this one and outscored the Choctaws in every period of play except for the second period where both teams scored 18 points.
Nautika Philpot led the way on offense for the Falcons with 24 points and dished out six assists to help propel the Falcons to victory. Philpot also had two rebounds and three steals in her performance tonight.
Kourtnie Smith continued to dominate on both sides of the ball and scored 17 points and grabbed 14 boards with 12 of them coming on the defensive glass.
Montevallo started off the game by outscoring the Choctaws 16-12 in the opening period. In what looked to be a back and forth period between the two teams ended in favor of the Falcons. Montevallo was able to take control of the lead in the final minute of the period and held the four-point advantage at the period break.
Montevallo held the lead in the second period, but Mississippi College took it back with 3:30 left to play in the half. On the next possession, D'Asia Marsh hit a three-pointer to give the Falcons a 27-25 lead. Montevallo held the lead the rest of the way and took a 34 -30 advantage into the break.
Montevallo came out of the break on fire and pushed their lead to double-digits and would not give it back for the rest of the night. After the third period, Montevallo led by nine points and kept the momentum going into the final period where they built a double-digit lead before cruising to a 76-64 victory.
The Falcons will take on Delta State in their second conference game in three days on Saturday, December 1 at 2:00 pm when Montevallo travels to Cleveland, Miss.
