DEMOREST, Ga. – In just her second game of the 2019-20 season, junior point guard Ty'She Washington exploded onto the scene by scoring a career-high 24 points, but the Brevard College women's basketball team's late comeback attempt came up just short as the Tornados (5-11, 3-7 USAS) fell 67-58 to the Piedmont College Lions (11-8, 7-3 USAS) on Wednesday evening at the Cave Arena in Demorest, Georgia.
Washington posted her 24-point outing via a highly efficient 9-of-11 shooting performance from the field. The Charlotte, North Carolina native made 4-of-5 shots from distance and added a pair of free throws in addition to grabbing three rebounds and swiping a team-best three steals on the defensive side of the floor.
Junior forward Deja Riddick tallied her second-straight and fourth double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while distributing a team-best five assists on the evening. Senior center Krysta Davis rounded out Brevard's three double-digit scorers with 11 points of her own, while Destiny Williams added seven points and eight rebounds. All told, the quartet of Davis, Riddick, Washington, and Williams scored 53 of Brevard's 58 points on the night.
Piedmont's Brittany Walker led the way for the host Lions with a perfect 7-of-7 performance from the field and 4-of-4 mark from the charity stripe that resulted in 18 points. Walker was one of three Piedmont players to reach double digits in scoring.
After both sides traded buckets for a 6-6 tie through the first three minutes of action, Piedmont used a 9-0 run to establish a 15-6 lead with 4:13 left to play in the first quarter.
The Lions took a 19-14 advantage into the second quarter of play, a lead that they would quickly extend via a 10-0 scoring run that saw Piedmont hold a 29-14 lead with 7:43 remaining in the second period. Brevard would cut the Piedmont lead to single digits, 41-32, as the contest entered halftime.
Brevard fought back hard in the third quarter, cutting Piedmont's lead to just one point on two separate occasions before the Lions answered back to take an eight-point, 55-47 lead into the game's final quarter.
A Shakirah Thompson jumper followed by a Washington 3-pointer cut Piedmont's lead to just three points, 55-52, less than two minutes into the fourth and final period of play. Both sides would go scoreless through the next four minutes before a Walker layup broke the scoreless spell and gave Piedmont a five-point lead. Piedmont was then able to wrap up its victory, extending the lead to as many as 11 points before securing the 67-58 victory.
Turnovers plagued BC through the contest and were crucial in the fourth quarter of play. The Tornados committed 21 total turnovers, with five coming down the stretch of the game. Piedmont was able to outscore Brevard 36-26 in the paint and dished out six more assists (14-8) than the Tornados. Brevard knocked in 35.7% of its 3-pointers (5-of-14) to Piedmont's 25% (3-of-12).
The Tornados return to the Boshamer Gymnasium this Saturday, January 25 for a USA South Conference matchup against Huntingdon College (8-10, 7-2 USAS), with tip-off scheduled for 2 p.m.
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