RALEIGH, N.C. - The Shaw University women's basketball team used stifling defense in the first half to build a 30-point halftime margin before cruising to a 93-49 victory over Winston-Salem State Wednesday evening at C.C. Spaulding Gymnasium.

With the win, Shaw improves to 12-6, 6-2 in the CIAA and 2-0 in the Southern Division.  Winston-Salem State falls to 11-7, 5-3 and 1-1.

The Lady Bears, who hit 50 percent of their shots on the evening, held the Lady Rams to only 26.7 percent shooting, and forced them into 23 turnovers.  Shaw also held the advantage on the boards, pulling in 50 rebounds, compared to 37 for WSSU.

In the first half, WSSU sank only six field goals on their way to 17 points.  They hit only 18.8 percent of their field goals and were only 50 percent from the free throw line.  Shaw hit 60 percent of their shots from the floor and 80 percent from the line in the first. 

Verdine Warner scored the first seven points of the game, hitting three shots in the lane and a single free throw as the Lady Bears built the 7-0 lead.  

After Jasmine Elum got the Lady Rams on the board with a three, the Lady Bears extended the lead to 11-3 on a jumper from Kaula Jacks.

WSSU scored the next four trim the Shaw lead to only four, but Shaw answered with 14 straight points, punctuated by a Warner layup that gave Shaw a 25-7 advantage.

Shaw extended the lead to 20 points when Diamond Mitchell hit a layup with 8:07 left in the half.  WSSU didn't get into double digits until the 7:44 mark when Elum hit a free throw to trim the Shaw lead to 29-10.

Shaw scored the next five points, building a 35-10 lead on a Jacks fastbreak layup, but the Lady Rams responded with five straight to bring the lead back to 20.

Ariel Hatcher scored eight of the next ten points -- all from Shaw -- as the Lady Bears recaptured momentum and stretched the lead to 30 at 45-15.  The teams would exchange buckets to close out the half and go into the locker room with Shaw holding a 47-17 lead.

The Lady Rams opened the second half on a 14-4 run, cutting the Shaw lead to 20 when Elum converted a three-point play to set the score at 51-31 with 14:45 left in the contest.  Ninety seconds later, Amanda Hairston sank a free throw that brought the Shaw lead under 20 at 53-34.

The Lady Bears scored the next four points, on their way to a 12-2 run that concluded with a Warner free throw that upped the lead to 65-36. 

Bryann Guyton sank a pair of free throws with 6:56 left in the contest to stretch the lead back to 30 and continue what would be a 16-7 run that extended the lead to 38 points at 81-43.

The Lady Bears closed out the game on a 12-6 run that set the final score at 93-49.

Hatcher and Mitchell led the Lady Bears with 23 points apiece.  Warner finished with ten points.  Micah Brooks had nine rebounds and Kamiya Burwell eight assists to lead Shaw.

Elum was the only Lady Ram to crack double digits, scoring 20.  Elum, Dionna Scott and Briana Wilder had five rebounds apiece and Amanda Hairston two assists to lead WSSU.

The Lady Bears return to action Saturday afternoon as they travel across Southeast Raleigh to take on cross-town rival Saint Augustine's in a 2:00 p.m. tip.  They don't return home until February 1 when they host Johnson C. Smith, also at 2:00 p.m.