Winston-Salem, NC --The Shaw women's basketball team could not keep up in a 78-40 loss to the Winston-Salem Rams on the road Saturday.

D'Ayzha Atkinson led the Lady Bears (8-14, 6-9) with 15 points and six rebounds. Leasia Matthews also added eight points and Mahogany Collins helped out with four points and three blocks.

Atkinson pulled down four offensive rebounds to lead an offense that racked up second chance opportunities for Shaw, grabbing 11 boards and turning them into 11 second chance points.

Shaw did a great job disrupting Winston-Salem shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. Collins' three rejections led the way individually for the Bears.

How It Happened

Shaw struggled out of the gate, falling behind 24-13 at the end of the first quarter.

The Lady Bears continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 45-18 halftime deficit.

Shaw's deficit continued to grow after halftime, and the Lady Bears faced a 63-24 disadvantage heading to the fourth quarter. Shaw played well near the basket, scoring four of its six points in the paint.

Winston-Salem kept widening its lead in the fourth, constructing a 72-31 advantage before Shaw went on a 6-0 run to shrink the deficit to 72-37 with 3:27 to go in the contest. Winston-Salem responded and outscored the Lady Bears the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 78-40. Shaw got a boost from its bench in the period, with non-starters scoring six of its 16 total points.

Game Notes

» The Lady Bears were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording five blocks as a team.
» Shaw cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Shaw got six rebounds from both Jaelyn Richardson and D'Ayzha Atkinson.

Up Next
Shaw heads to Livingstone College on February 18th for a road CIAA showdown. Tipoff if scheduled for 5:30 PM.