Clemson Falls at Wake Forest, 86-71

Jan. 23, 2005

Winston-Salem, NC – Wake Forest scored 53 points in the first half on its way to an 86-71 victory over Clemson on Sunday from Lawrence Joel Coliseum. The Demon Deacons improved to 13-5, 2-3 in the ACC. The Lady Tigers, who lost for the fourth consecutive time, fall to 7-10 overall (1-4 in the ACC).

Khaili Sanders tied a career-high with 17 points. She had previously reached double figures in scoring just once this season. She shot 7-10 from the field and also blocked a pair of shots. D’Lesha Lloyd also reached double figures with 14 points on 6-11 field goals. Reggie Maddox was the third Lady Tiger in double figures with 11 points. She also had three steals.

For Wake Forest, sharpshooter Liz Strunk nailed six three-point shots and scored 21 in the second half and 30 for the game. The 30 points was the most by an opposing player this season. Erin Ferrell added 17 for the Deacons, in addition to 15 rebounds.

The Lady Tigers began the game with their 10th different starting lineup this season. Earning her first start of the 2004-05 season was junior forward Sanders. She already had her season-high by halftime, as she scored 15 in the first period. She did so in just nine minutes played. Maddox had seven points in the first half for the Lady Tigers.

Wake Forest put 53 points on the board in the first half, the most for an opposing team against Clemson this season. The previous high had been 43 by San Diego in November. The Demon Deacons shot 50 percent in the half and made seven from beyond the three-point arc. Ferrell nearly matched Sanders in terms of individual performance with 14 first-half points.

In the second half, Clemson actually outscored Wake Forest 36-33. The Lady Tigers held the Deacons to 28 percent shooting in the second half. Clemson shot 44.6 percent in the game, compared to 39.7 for Wake Forest. However, the Deacons controlled the rebounding margin by four. Clemson won the battle of points in the paint 36-20, but Wake Forest outscored Clemson by nine in second chance points.

The Deacons got out to a lead as much as 23 in the second period at 66-43. Clemson then put together an impressive 18-3 run. Carrie Whitehurst scored five points in the run, while Amanda White was effective inside with six points. That cut the lead to 69-61, but was as close as the Lady Tigers could get. An 8-0 counter by Wake Forest effectively put the game out of reach.

The Lady Tigers stay on the road for their next ACC game, a Wednesday night matchup with Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 PM.