CONWAY – Frontcourt players Aja Blount and Naheria Hamilton combined for 32 points and 19 rebounds to lead Coastal Carolina to an easy 86-44 win over outmatched UNC Pembroke Thursday night at the HTC Center. The Chanticleers improved to 6-1 on the season while the Braves fell to 5-3 on the year.
Blount, a sophomore forward, had 18 points while Hamilton, a senior forward, had 14 points to pace five Coastal players in double figures. Hamilton also pulled down 11 rebounds to register the 21st double-double of her career while Blount was just two rebounds short of getting her third career double-double.
Junior guard Zacharyia Esmon had 13 of her 18 points in the second half, while backcourt players DJ Williams and Tiarra Davis had 14 and 11 points, respectively.
For the game, Coastal hit better than 50 percent of its shots from the field (29-of-56) and held UNC Pembroke to just 14 field goals on the night. The Chanticleers also hit a season-high 10 three-pointers and in typical fashion, the Chants held the rebounding advantage, 41-31.
UNCP was led on the offensive end of the hardwood by Tee Graham who finished with nine points.
Davis knocked down three consecutive three-pointers in the final minutes to give CCU its largest lead of the game at 83-40 with three minutes left in the contest.
Coastal took control early and never looked back. The Chanticleers used a 15-0 run early in the first period to take a commanding 22-4 lead. At halftime, the advantage was 42-22 with Blount and Hamilton showing their muscle inside. The duo combined for 24 points and 14 rebounds at the break.
Coastal Carolina’s next game is at 2 p.m. Sunday (Dec. 8) at UNC Wilmington before returning home to host Wesleyan next Thursday (Dec. 12) at 7 p.m.
Courtesy – Coastal Carolina Athletics
