DEMOREST, Ga. - Senior forward Destiny Williams dropped a career-best 32 points as the Brevard College women's basketball team (6-6) concluded its 2020-21 campaign, falling 88-63 to USA South West Division Tournament number one seed Piedmont College (15-3) on Wednesday evening in Cave Arena.
Williams, an Aiken, South Carolina native, broke her previous career-high mark of 24 points set last Saturday vs. Huntingdon with a 32-point performance against the top-ranked Lions. Her 32 points came on 10 made field goals and a perfect 8-of-8 mark from the free throw line, while also knocking in a season-high four 3-pointers. The senior dominated the stat sheet in the contest, dishing out a game-high five assists and swiping a team-high five steals in addition to hauling down four boards.
Makenna Parkins scored eight points and tallied four rebounds off the bench for BC, while Deja Riddick added seven points and three steals. Avery Lockwood grabbed a team-best seven rebounds in addition to six points for the Tornados.
Piedmont's highly-efficient scoring effort was led by Livia Skinner (22 points) and Nakiyah Washington (20 points), as the Lions had four double-digit individual scoring performances while shooting at a 52% clip from the field. In addition to its efficient scoring output, the hosts attempted 42 free throws compared to Brevard's 15 shots from the charity stripe.
The Lions held the slight edge in rebounds (39-30) and assists (17-10), while both teams combined for 44 turnovers in the matchup. Piedmont outscored Brevard 48-36 in the paint while holding a 20-12 advantage on fastbreak buckets.
Brevard's lone lead of the evening came on the game's first bucket, as Lockwood knocked in a layup on BC's first field goal attempt, putting the Tornados up 2-0. A 9-0 scoring run over the next four minutes of play saw Piedmont take a 9-2 advantage with 5:30 left in the first quarter.
After four-straight points from Williams made the score 9-6, Piedmont was able to extend its early lead out to as many as 15 points in the first period, taking a 27-12 lead into the second quarter behind a nine-point quarter from Skinner.
Although the Lions pushed their lead to a 20-point mark at one point in the second quarter, Williams took over for the Tornados, scoring 12 of Brevard's 18 points in the stanza to keep BC within striking distance. After a Williams 3-pointer at the buzzer, Piedmont took a 17-point, 47-30 lead into the locker rooms at the intermission.
Brevard turned in a very impressive third-quarter performance, outscoring the Lions 20-15 while holding Piedmont's lethal offense to just 3-of-11 (27%) from the field. The Tornados were able to cut the Lion lead to 12 points, as a Melvin Seymore layup trimmed Piedmont's lead to 62-50 with one quarter remaining.
Through the first six-plus minutes of the fourth period, Piedmont went on a 19-3 scoring stretch that helped put the Lions over the top, as the hosts held a commanding 81-53 lead at the 3:38 mark. BC's Williams logged nine points in the last quarter of play to shatter her previous career mark of 24 points, as the senior reached the 32-point mark in her final game in a Tornado uniform.
The BC women's basketball team, under the direction of Head Coach Donald Hudson and Assistant Coach Taylor Spangler, conclude its 2020-21 campaign with six wins in 12 total contests. Brevard's 6-5 record in conference and regular-season play is the women's basketball program's first winning record in its NCAA-era history.
Brevard's appearance in the USA South West Division Tournament on Wednesday marked the first postseason USA South Conference appearance for any sport at Brevard College. as the Tornados became full-time USA South members and eligible for conference postseason play at the beginning of the 2020-21 academic year. The postseason appearance also marked the first for the women's basketball program over its 14-season stretch in the NCAA-era.
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-BC-