BOX SCORE / POSTGAME INTERVIEW WITH HEAD COACH TANYA RAY

MONTICELLO – Freshman Donlicia James recorded her second consecutive double-double to lead the University of Arkansas at Monticello women’s basketball team to a come-from-behind 78-62 win over Arkansas-Fort Smith on Friday night inside Steelman Fieldhouse.

James tied UAFS forward Porsha Donnerson for the game-high in scoring with 22 points. James added 13 rebounds, including 10 on the offensive glass. The freshman was 6-of-14 from the field and 10-of-14 from the foul line. Senior Candace Virgadamo and freshman Jordan Goforth added 14 points each, while freshman Demetra Howlingwolf rounded out the UAM double-digit scorers with 10 points.

The Cotton Blossoms (2-0) held the Lady Lions (1-1) to just one basket in the final 4:39, closing out the contest on a 13-2 scoring run to seal the victory.

UAFS jumped out to a seven-point lead in the first four minutes of the second half after leading by two points at halftime. UAM’s James forced a 49-all tie with a layup at the 11:44 mark, which was followed by a back-and-forth battle over the next two minutes. UAM grabbed the lead for good at 55-53 on a Jaylan Hines layup with 9:09 remaining in regulation.

UAM led by as much as eight points in the first half before UAFS used an 18-10 scoring run to force a 25-all tie with just under eight minutes remaining in the period.

Both teams went cold over the final eight minutes of the first half, with UAM only connecting one field goal attempt and UAFS making two for a 32-30 lead at the break.

UAM won the rebounding battle 44-39, including a 27-19 edge on the defensive glass. UAM scored 29 points off of 28 turnovers committed by the Lady Lions.

As a team, UAM shot 43 percent from the field (25-of-58), 25 percent on three-pointers (2-of-8) and 70 percent at the foul line (26-of-37). UAFS finished at 37 percent from the field (25-of-68), 19 percent on three-pointers (3-of-16) and 53 percent on foul shots (9-of-17).

In addition to tying James for the game-high in scoring, UAFS’s Porsha Donnerson also led all players with 16 rebounds.

The Cotton Blossoms will take its first countable road trip next Tuesday, November 20 to face off against the University of New Orleans. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans.