HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. – Freshmen Mallory George (Berkeley Heights, N.J./Governor Livingston), Melissa Rabe (Byram, N.J./Lenape Valley) and Jessie Sharr (Belvidere, N.J./Belvidere) combined for 46 points and 26 rebounds as the Centenary College women's basketball team ended a six-game losing skid with an 81-61 victory over Keystone Wednesday night.
All three set new career highs in the scoring column. George produced her fourth double-double of the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Sharr tallied a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double, her first. Rabe keyed a late second-half run for the Cyclones, scoring 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting in 11 minutes off the bench.
Sophomore guard Ally Fugnitti (Wood-Ridge, N.J./Wood-Ridge) also reached double figures as she canned four three-pointers and totaled 15 points, while senior guard Klarissa Perry (Englewood, N.J./Dwight Morrow) turned in an all-around performance with nine points, 11 boards, five assists and four steals.
Centenary produced 80 points for the second time this year after draining a season-best 28 free throws. The Cyclones made 45 trips to the charity stripe, including 31 during the second half.
Fugnitti's triple gave Centenary its first lead of the game at the 15:13 mark and she knocked down another during the Cyclones' next possession to extend the lead to 15-11.
Keystone rallied with a 9-1 spurt to grab a six-point edge, but Fugnitti's third three-pointer of the half sparked a 14-3 surge for Centenary, helping the Cyclones take the lead at intermission.
The Giants used a strong defensive effort during the opening minutes of the second half to rally from a 10-point deficit. KC forced five Cyclone turnovers during a five-minute span, putting together a 14-2 run that gave the Giants a 50-45 lead with 11:47 to play.
Rabe checked into the game for the first time 49 seconds later and had an immediate impact as she sank a layup while being fouled and connected on the ensuing free throw to give Centenary a 51-50 edge. In total, Rabe scored nine points during an 11-1 Cyclone surge to help CC take a lead that it would not relinquish.
The Cyclones made 28 trips to the free throw line, making 21, during the final 4:17 to ice the game. George and Sharr combined to make 14-of-16 shots during that stretch.
Centenary outrebounded Keystone 54-42 and shot 39 percent (24-62) from the field, compared to 24-of-69 (.348) by the Giants.
Jazmyn Robinson paced KC with 16 points, nine boards, five assists and five steals. Keystone made just 3-of-20 attempts from beyond the arc.
Centenary looks to make it two-straight wins on Saturday when hosting Cairn at 1:00 pm. The Cyclones knocked off the Highlanders 84-29 earlier this season.