BIRMINGHAM, Ala.--The Samford women's basketball team used a strong defensive effort and clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch to pull out a 48-43 victory over Chattanooga in Southern Conference action Saturday afternoon in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
"I was extremely proud of our team and the way we played," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "I was proud of the way we defended. In the second half, I thought we were much better offensively, we got some good looks. I'm just super proud of the way our team competed and played."
 
With the win, Samford moves into a first-place tie in the SoCon standings with Mercer at 4-1 in league play. Samford has a record of 12-8 overall. Chattanooga drops to 13-7 overall and 4-2 in SoCon games. The win was Samford's first over Chattanooga since 2012.
 
Samford was led in the game by senior guard Amara Mayers with 18 points. Mayers was 5-of-6 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the free-throw line. Senior center Taylor Reece scored 14 points for the Bulldogs, while sophomore forward Destiney Elliott added nine points and five rebounds.
 
"Amara was big and made plays," Morris said. "When the defense broke down, she got to the rim. I have to give her a lot of credit, she went 8-for-10 from the line and she's been struggling there and she has really worked on that in the last week, as has our entire team. I thought that was the difference in the game."
 
As a team, Samford shot 43.2 percent from the floor. The team made 16-of-20 attempts from the free-throw line. The Bulldogs were 0-of-7 from three-point range, marking the first time in 275 games Samford has failed to make a three-pointer. The last time the Bulldogs went without a three-pointer was on Feb. 15, 2007, in a 58-48 win at Morehead State.
 
Chattanooga was led in the game by Keiana Gilbert with 10 points and five rebounds. Jasmine Joyner had nine points and 12 rebounds for the Lady Mocs.
 
After Chattanooga grabbed the early 2-0 lead, Samford went on a 10-2 run to take a 10-4 lead with 4:32 left in the first quarter following a layup by Elliott. Chattanooga then scored the next six points to tie the score at 10-10 with 15 seconds to go in the opening period. Samford's Lydia McGee hit a layup at the first-quarter buzzer to give Samford a 12-10 lead heading to the second period.
 
In the second quarter, Samford grabbed a 16-12 lead with 7:13 to go in the period after a jumper by Mayers. Chattanooga fought back to tie the game at 17-17 with 1:24 left in the second quarter after a pair of free throws by Aryanna Gilbert. Mayers hit two late free throws to give Samford a 19-17 lead going into the locker room at halftime.
 
After Chattanooga tied the score at 19-19 early in the third quarter, Samford went on an 8-2 run to take a 27-21 lead with 5:33 left in the period after two three throws by Elliott. The Lady Mocs fought back to cut the lead to one at 31-30 with 1:39 left in the period following a three-point play by Joyner. Samford held a 33-32 advantage after three quarters.
 
Samford opened the final period with a 7-0 run to take a 40-32 lead with 4:23 to go following a layup by Mayers. UTC fought back to cut the lead to four at 44-40 with 40 seconds to go. Mayers and Reece then hit a pair of free throws each to give Samford a 48-40 lead with 32 seconds remaining. A late three-pointer by Chattanooga's Alicia Payne made the final score 48-43.
 
Chattanooga won the rebounding battle, 34-25, including a 13-3 edge in offensive boards. Samford dished out 10 assists, while Chattanooga had seven. The Lady Mocs committed 15 turnovers, to Samford's 12.
 
Samford will return to action on Jan. 28, when the Bulldogs play at Furman. The game is scheduled for a 10 a.m. (CT) start from Greenville, S.C.