Ten Minutes into a slow scoring contest between the Lady Rattlers and Maryland Eastern Shore, the game intensified when senior guard Antonia Bennett knocked down two consecutive three pointers to score her 1,000th points of her career.
“It was a big accomplishment, I was just going out and playing with the flow of the game. I was making shots and everything was perfect on my Birthday today,” Bennett said.
Bennett was three-for-four from the three-point line and scored 17 points in the first half. She finished with ten rebounds to post another double-double this season.
Earlier in the season the Lady Rattlers suffered a close loss against Maryland Eastern Shore 62-64 on January 15. Bennett scored 26 points and caused matchup problems all night.
“We were short-handed in their gym, and some of us got into foul trouble and they were able to pull out the victory,” Bennett said.
The Lady Rattlers were fluid offensively and scored 24 points in the next ten minutes of the first half. The Lady Rattlers shot 50 percent from the field and had a nine-point halftime lead.
“We had to come out play strong and play aggressive and I think we did,” Bennett said.
Senior guard Tameka McKelton, the leading scorer in the conference, finished with nine points in the first half. She reflected on scoring her 1,000 points earlier this week.
“It felt good I didn’t know exactly when I was going to score 1,000th point, but I knew it was soon, so I was just happy to score 1,000 point,” McKelton said.
Bennett finished with 25 points and McKelton finished with 21 points. Junior forward Shekeira Copeland scored 12 points off the bench and freshman guard Jasmine Grice grabbed eight rebounds and scored ten points.
“We are running the floor and looking for each other in transition,” Rattlers head coach LeDawn Gibson said.
Running the floor and efficient passing lead to 58 percent shooting in the second half. The Lady Rattlers offensive attack came in spurts during the second half.
“We had a few letdowns in the game but they never gave up, we called a timeout and made the adjustments and we excel from there,” Gibson said.
The Lady Rattler forced their will in the paint and got to the free throw line 19 times to make 14 attempts.
Monday brings another MEAC matchup against ninth-ranked Delaware State in the multipurpose center. The Lady Rattler’s cruised to a ten-point victory in their last game.