Tiger Women Edge Furman, 57-52

Dec. 1, 1999

GREENVILLE, S.C. – Datishella Byrd scored 13 points in leading Clemson to a 57-52 win over Furman in a women’s intercollegiate basketball game at Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C. Wednesday night.

Clemson improves its record to 5-1 overall, while Furman falls to 1-3 this season.

Furman was led in scoring by Jackie Smith with 23 points. Smith also had 12 rebounds for her 35th career double-double. Kena Hodges and Tara Charles both finished the game with 11 points for the Lady Paladins. Amirah Leonard led the Lady Tigers in rebounding with eight. In the first half, Clemson took a 18-11 lead with 6:50 left to go as Datishella Byrd made a layup after a Chrissy Floyd steal. From this point, Furman went on a 12-3 run in the next 4:38 to take a 23-21 lead. Jackie Smith scored seven points in the Lady Paladin rally. Furman took a 27-25 lead at intermission.

In the first half, Clemson shot 9-25 from the field for a .360 pct. Furman shot 10-28 from the floor for a .357 mark.

Clemson opened the second half with a 10-2 run in the first 6:34. Both Byrd and Amirah Leonard scored three points each in this run. However Furman came back and took a 46-45 lead with 6:25 left. This was the last time the Paladins would lead. The Lady Tigers scored the next eight points and took a 53-46 advantage with 3:00 remaining as Chrissy Floyd hit a layup.

For the game, Clemson shot 19-54 for a .352 figure, whiel Furman shot 18-56 from the floor for a .321 pct. Furman outrebounded the Lady Tigers 44-38.

“Furman took the fight to us tonight,” said Clemson Head Coach, Jim Davis. “We have been very successful getting second chance baskets this season. However, Furman did a great job blocking us out and limiting our second chance opportunities. Byrd’s effort paid off in the second half and she did a great job for us tonight. I thought on the defensive side we played great. Our defensive play was definitely a key for us tonight.”

Clemson will play at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, GA Saturday afternoon, at 2:00 p.m. in the Lady Tigers next action.