First Half Surge Leads No. 3 Wartburg Over Griffins

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—The Fontbonne University women's basketball team took on No. 3 Wartburg on Monday prior to the holiday break and it was the Knights coming away with the 73-50 win.

Final: No. 3 Wartburg 73, Fontbonne 50

Location: DSAC

Records: No. 3 Wartburg 4-1, Fontbonne 1-4

How It Happened

In the first quarter, the Knights opened with a 11-0 lead through the first three minutes and 20 seconds on Payton Draper's made jumper. With 2:55 left, the Griffins were down 26-9 but they closed out the final minutes on a 7-2 run to make it a 28-16 deficit at the break.

In the second quarter, the Knights shot 44.4 percent from the floor and outscored Fontbonne 21-11 to lead 49-27 heading into the locker room.

In the third, a 3-pointer from Rylee Stafford at 9:13 put Fontbonne down 51-30. Despite owning a double-digit lead, the Knights never got its offense going against the Griffins defense in the third as they shot just 30.8 percent from the field and were held to 12 total points. Still, the Knights went into the fourth on top, 61-40.

In the fourth, the Griffins defense forced five more Knights turnovers and held them to a 30.0 field goal percentage but despite its efforts Wartburg went on for the 23-point win.

Inside The Numbers

• Wartburg ended the outing with a 45.0 field goal percentage and went 12-of-15 from the line.
• The Knights controlled the glass with a 45-25 advantage and totaled 21 assists.
• Fontbonne ended with a 34.6 field goal percentage and defensively forced 19 Wartburg turnovers.

No. 3 Wartburg Leaders

• Macy Harris led off the bench with a team-high 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting in 19 minutes played.
• Bailey Naig was the final player in double-figures with 11 off the bench.

Fontbonne Leaders

• Stafford led the floor with a game and season-high 16 points on 6-of-18 shooting.
• Haley Buscher came off the bench to add nine points, while Raven Venegas went 4-of-5 from the field to end with eight points.

Up Next

The Griffins will now enjoy a 10-day break before returning to the court on December 4^th when they'll visit MacMurray for its first conference game. Tip-off at 5:30 p.m.

Fans make sure to stay updated on fontbonnegriffins.com throughout the year for full updates on the women's basketball team.

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