University of Georgia Athletics
No. 10 Lady Bulldogs Hold Off Santa Clara, 77-65
November 28, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 28, 2003
Box Score
Santa Clara, Calif. --- Kara Braxton posted her third double-double in as many games this season to lead No. 10 Georgia (3-0) to a 77-65 win over Santa Clara (1-2) at SCU's Leavey Center here on Friday night.
Braxton poured in 21 points, including 16 in the second half, and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead four Lady Dogs in double figures. Christi Thomas added 18 points, while Jessica Pierce and Sherill Baker chipped in 12 and 11, respectively.
Michelle Cozad led Santa Clara with 22 points.
Georgia, which opened the season with convincing wins over Georgia State and Georgia Southern, looked to be on its way to another blowout early in Friday's matchup. The Lady Bulldogs built a 30-13 lead with 7:44 remaining in the first half.
The Broncos outscored Georgia 15-7 over the rest of the period to close to 37-28 at the break.
The Lady Dogs again surged early in the second stanza, quickly pushing the lead back to 12 points before Santa Clara rallied again.
Georgia owned a 56-50 lead with 8:31 left, but the Broncos grabbed the lead for the first time in the game at 58-56 on a three-pointer by Whitney Sutak with 6:58 remaining. The teams traded the lead six times over the next 2:39 before the Lady Bulldogs scored six unanswered points to build a 67-62 advantage at the 2:58 mark.
Baker helped put the game away with a pair of steals and easy layups during the final 1:54 of the contest. An offensive putback by Braxton off a missed free throw gave Georgia a 75-65 lead with just 19 seconds left.
Georgia remains in California through the weekend. The Lady Bulldogs will now take on No. 6 Stanford on Sunday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. ET.
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