GREENWOOD – WyKira Johnson-Kelly (Franklinville, N.J.) scored 18 points as the Lander Bearcats used a 29-6 run to pull away from Peach Belt Conference rival North Georgia 71-48 for their fifth consecutive victory Wednesday night at Horne Arena.
Lander improved to 12-3 overall, 5-0 in the Peach Belt.
The Nighthawks fell to 10-5, 3-2 in the PBC.
The Bearcats and North Georgia have long been rivals fighting for Peach Belt championships the last several years with both making several trips to the NCAA Tournament. But after many battles, this game was not close.
Lander used a 29-6 run to turn an 18-13 lead early in the second quarter to a 47-19 advantage with six minutes left in the third period.
The Bearcats forced 26 turnovers, collecting 13 steals led by Tanyia Gordon's (Plant City, Fla.) five.
Johnson-Kelly led all scorers with her 18 points and also added six assists.
Gordon contributed 15 points, six rebounds and those five steals.
Quadaija Langley (Travelers Rest, S.C.) added 13 points and three steals for Lander while Ashley Tucker (Buffalo, N.Y.) chipped in with eight points and two blocked shots.
Lexi Pierce and Kendal Emener scored 12 points apiece to lead the Nighthawks. Emily Trushel led the visitors with eight rebounds.
Gordon made a 3-pointer from the left wing to break a 5-all tie, giving the Bearcats the lead for good. After North Georgia closed within 8-7, the Blue and Gold scored eight unanswered points to begin pulling away. Tucker scored four of those eight points as Lander's lead grew to 16-7. The Bearcats were up 18-11 going into the second quarter.
The Nighthawks pulled within 18-13 in the first minute of the second period. But then Lander caught fire from behind the arc. Langley and Cory Santoro (Bellevue, Ohio) each made 3-pointers and Tucker added a layup – Johnson-Kelly got the assist on all three baskets – as the Bearcats led 26-15.
Langley, Gordon and Aaliyah Bell (Pooler, Ga.) hit 3-pointers in a two-minute span, extending Lander's advantage to 35-17.
The onslaught continued with Gordon and Johnson-Kelly making layups as the Bearcats scored the final 10 points of the half to take a 39-17 lead into the intermission.
Johnson-Kelly ignited Lander's offense early in the third, scoring three times on drives to the basket. She also delivered a nice interior pass to Alicia Burgos (Milwaukee, Wisc.) for two more points and yet another assist on a jumper by Amani Melendez (Woodbridge, Va.), growing the lead to 49-24 with 4:11 left in the third.
Isabel Davenport's 3-pointer started a 10-0 North Georgia run, cutting the score to 49-34. But Johnson-Kelly closed the third quarter with a driving layup giving the Bearcats a 51-34 lead going into the fourth.
Lander opened the final quarter fast as Gordon made a tough jumper in the lane and Johnson-Kelly added two more drives to the basket for layups, making it 57-36 with 7:44 left.
Johnson-Kelly's steal and layup gave the Bearcats a 64-42 advantage with 3:47 to go.
Langley added a 3-pointer, Trinity Thomas (Lawrenceville, Ga.) made a driving layup for the first basket of her Lander career, and Courtney Nesbitt (Loganville, Ga.) drove for a layup which was her second field goal of the season to complete the scoring.
Lander is back at home on Saturday as they host Georgia College and State University at 1:30 PM inside Horne Arena.
