By Steven Marowski, '18

ALMA, Mich. – With senior Darian Payne notching a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds, the Albion College pulled away with a 73-59 victory over Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association rival Alma College.

With the win, the Britons won for the fifth time in seven games to improve to 9-12 overall and 5-7 against MIAA rivals.

"We played more up-tempo this game and got better looks," Head Coach Doreen Carden said. "The turnovers we forced was because of the pressure we put on them."

The Britons gained a lead in the first quarter and never relinquished it. Albion took a 41-26 lead into halftime, and the 15-point deficit proved to be too much of a gap for the Scots.

"There was definitely a sense of urgency," Carden said. "We were really locked in on the defensive end today."

In the first half alone, the Britoms shot over 60 percent from field goal range. Sixteen of their 29 bench points also came in the first two quarters of the game.

Along with Payne's 18 points and 11 rebounds, she was 8-14 from field goal range and had five steals. Junior guard Emily Zgoda also scored 15 points, and first-year guard Jay Bard tallied 12 points. Bard was 3-5 from field goal range and 6-8 from the line.

As a team, Albion shot just under 52 percent from the field, which was over 10 percent better than the Scots and almost 15 percent better than their average this season. Along with their great field goal shooting, their free throw shooting was over 10 percent better than their season average.

"We know how important every game is at this point in the season, so it was good to see us be locked in today," Carden said.

The Britons will host Trine University on Wednesday, Feb. 10. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.