BREVARD, N.C. - Long-range accuracy lifted the Brevard women's basketball team to a 67-63 win past Anderson in South Atlantic Conference action Saturday afternoon at Boshamer Gymnasium.

Anderson (7-11, 3-7 SAC), hobbled by the absence of two starters that did not make the trip due to illness, second-leading scorer Alexa Neal and forward Tilde Ahlin, began the second-half of its league schedule by dropping its second consecutive contest.

Brevard, which improved to 6-14 overall and 2-8 in league play, snapped a six-game losing streak with the win.

A five-minute scoring drought by the Trojans enabled Brevard to open a five-point lead midway through the second half and the Tornados went on a 10-0 run en route to building a 59-50 lead with 5:20 left in the game.

Anderson pulled within three on a 3-pointer by senior Ashley Abed with 41 seconds remaining and again on a lay-up by Alissa Diaz 18 seconds later but would get no closer as Brevard connected on five of eight from the line in the final moments to hold off the Trojans.

Anderson bolted out to a quick 5-0 lead to open the game, but the Tornados nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to claim a brief one-point edge before the Trojans' Ashley Abed answered with a trey of her own to regain an 8-6 advantage for AU at the 16:16 mark.
Brevard, which entered the game second in the league in 3s by averaging more than six treys per contest, scored their first 18 points of the game from beyond the arc to keep pace with the Trojans, before AU freshman Emily Willoughby scored five straight points to briefly turn an 18-17 deficit into a 22-20 Anderson lead. Abed followed with a lay-up to boost the Trojans' advantage to four points - the largest by either team since the opening two minutes of the game.

With the Trojans holding a 26-24 edge, the Tornados again heated up from long range, as Asheley Watkins and Micheala Watkins hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give BC a four-point advantage inside the final five minutes of the half. Sophomore guard Alissa Diaz countered with a jumper, but Watkins drained her third 3-pointer of the afternoon to give Brevard its largest cushion of the opening 20 minutes, 33-28, with 3:54 on the clock.

But the Trojan defense held the Tornados to just two free throws over the final four minutes, allowing AU to rally for a 37-35 halftime lead. Guard Amanda Parris began the surge with a pair of free throws, then sophomore Maci Siniard dropped in a jumper to pull AU within 34-32. Freshman guard Kimberly Major added five of her seven first-half points over a 56-second span to cap the rally.

Anderson out-rebounded Brevard 36-23 on the afternoon, but the Tornados countered by connecting on 12-of-24 three-point attempts.

Abed scored a team-high 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting, while Breonda Shannon added 13 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Freshman Kimberly Major tallied a season-high 12 points.

Watkins led all scorers with 26 points and Anna Schlobohm netted 19 for the Tornados.

Anderson returns to the Tar Heel State on Wednesday to face Lenoir-Rhyne in Hickory. Tip-off versus the Bears is slated for 8 p.m. at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium.