PENSACOLA, Fla. — West Florida (2-3) erased a 13-point deficit and defeated Florida A&M (1-3) 70-66 Sunday at UWF Field House. West Florida scored 17 points off 16 Florida A&M turnovers and added 34 points in the paint.
"Being able to finish this game against a history program," said coach Yelton. "For our first division one win is pretty remarkable."
Finley Kennedy scored 15 points and converted seven of nine free throws.
Nia Coleman finished with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting and added four rebounds.
Kendall Lacoste scored 13 points and made three 3-pointers.
Annarose Tyre recorded four steals and four assists while adding eight points and five rebounds.
After Florida A&M scored the first two baskets, Coleman hit a 3-pointer off Tyre's assist and
Janai Jordan added another 3-pointer to pull West Florida even at 6-6 with 7:49 left in the first quarter. Niah Rhodes answered with back-to-back 3-pointers, and Kristen Johnson later made two 3-pointers of her own as Florida A&M moved ahead 20-10 by 4:22. West Florida scored the next six points on two Coleman free throws, Tyre steal and layup, and a Lacoste layup to cut the deficit to 20-16 at 2:44. Florida A&M closed the quarter with a Shaniyah McCarthy 3-pointer, baskets from Breasia Coit and Persais Williams around Kennedy's layup, and a 27-18 lead entering the second.
Florida A&M pushed West Florida into a 13-point deficit early in the second quarter, as Breasia Coit scored on a layup and Lisa Sims followed an offensive rebound with a dunk at 8:41 to make it 31-18. Tyre answered with a layup off Kennedy's assist and Jordan made two free throws to bring West Florida within 31-22, but Brooklyn Swann's two free throws gave Florida A&M a 33-22 lead. Coleman started a 10-0 West Florida run with a jumper and added a layup, Kennedy made two free throws, and Kennedy later finished back-to-back fast-break layups to cut the deficit to 33-32 at :14. Kristen Johnson missed a 3-pointer at :05 and Kennedy grabbed the rebound, leaving Florida A&M ahead 33-32 at halftime.
Florida A&M moved ahead 40-34 early in the third quarter after Breasia Coit scored at the rim and at the line and Niah Rhodes added a 3-pointer, with
Ebba Zalamans' layup providing West Florida's first basket of the quarter. Lacoste helped keep West Florida close, hitting 3-pointers at 8:13 and 6:49 and adding a layup at 5:27, while Kennedy's two free throws came during that stretch as Florida A&M held a 47-44 edge. After Kamryn Grant's layup made it 49-44, West Florida held Florida A&M scoreless until the final minute and cut the margin on
Maddy Rendall's fast-break layup and Tyre's steal and fast-break finish. Coit answered with a layup at :27, but Jordan scored inside with :13 left to send West Florida into the fourth quarter trailing 51-50.
Florida A&M pushed its lead to 54-50 on Breasia Coit's free throw and layup before Coleman scored inside and Lacoste hit a fast-break 3-pointer off Tyre's assist to put West Florida ahead 55-54 at 7:54. The teams traded the lead through the middle of the quarter, with
Giselle Eke's layup giving West Florida a 57-56 edge before Niah Rhodes' 3-pointer put Florida A&M back in front, 60-57. West Florida pulled even at 64-64 on Zalamans' free throw with 2:19 left, and Kennedy made two free throws at 1:29 to give West Florida a 66-64 lead. Coleman added a jumper off Kennedy's assist for a 68-64 advantage, and after Kamryn Grant cut it to 68-66, Coleman and Zalamans each made a late free throw as West Florida closed out a 70-66 win.
Up next, the West Florida basketball team hosts Spring Hill (Ala.) on Wednesday, Nov. 18, at 6 p.m. at UWF Field House in Pensacola, Fla.
