PRAIRIE VIEW, TX --The Prairie View A&M women's basketball team kept Grambling to just 16.7 percent from beyond the arc in a 2-for-12 shooting performance, but fell 67-44 to the Tigers at home Saturday.
The Panthers (3-8, 0-2) had three players score in double figures, led by Kaci Chairs, who had 11 points and two steals. Nyam Thornton added 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals and Crystal Schultz helped out with 10 points and three steals off of the bench.
Laila Robinson pulled down five offensive rebounds to lead an offense that racked up second chance opportunities for Prairie View A&M, grabbing 10 boards and turning them into 10 second chance points.
Prairie View A&M forced 15 Grambling turnovers. The Panthers turned those takeaways into 13 points on the offensive end of the floor. Schultz's three steals led the way for Prairie View A&M.
How It Happened
After falling behind 4-0, Prairie View A&M went on a 5-0 run with 8:21 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Schultz, to take a 5-4 lead. The Panthers then surrendered that lead and entered the second quarter down 18-10.
The Panthers continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 28-19 halftime deficit.
Prairie View A&M's deficit continued to grow after halftime, and the Panthers faced a 54-27 disadvantage heading to the fourth quarter. Prairie View A&M played well near the basket, scoring four of its eight points in the paint.
Prairie View A&M narrowed its deficit to 62-36 before going on a 6-0 run, finished off by Chairs' jumper, to shrink the deficit to 62-42 with 1:47 to go in the contest. Grambling responded and outscored the Panthers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 67-44. Prairie View A&M pulled down three offensive rebounds to score three second chance points out of 17 total in the period
Game Notes
» The Panthers held the Tigers to only 34.4 percent shooting from the field.
» Prairie View A&M played solid perimeter defense, holding Grambling to 17 percent from beyond the arc on 12 attempts.
» The Prairie View A&M bench came alive by adding 14 points to its scoring output.
» The Prairie View A&M defense forced 15 turnovers.
» The Panthers were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, tallying six blocks as a team.
» Prairie View A&M cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 10 offensive boards in the game.
» Kaci Chairs and Nyam Thornton led the Panthers with 11 points apiece.
» Prairie View A&M got a game-high nine rebounds from Ash'a Thompson.
The women's team will return to the road to play against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Game time is set for 5:30pm.
