The Belmont Abbey women's basketball team used a strong second half, outscoring Lees-McRae 33-21 in the stanza after leading by a point at halftime, as the Crusaders defeated the Lady Bobcats 65-52 this evening at the Wheeler Center. The Crusaders improve to 15-6 overall and 10-4 in Conference Carolinas, while Lees-McRae drops to 6-14 overall and 5-9 in Conference Carolinas.

Abbey freshman guard Mercedes King matched her career-high, leading four Crusaders in double figures with 16 poitns. Sophomore guard Courtney Naquin added 11, while Shayla Jackson and Marie Marquez both added ten. Jackson notched a double double with 10 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, 11 on the defensive glass. She also collected a pair of steals in 33 minutes. King finished 5-11 shooting from the floor, including a 3-4 effort from three-point range. The Crusaders shot 43.4 percent (23-53) from the floor and 50 percent (5-10) from three-point range.

Lees-McRae shot 37.8 percent (17-45) from the floor as Stephanie Mullinax led all scorers with 21 points, 14 of those in the first half. She was nearly perfect shooting from the field, finishing 8-9 from the floor, including a 3-4 effort from three-point range. Cortney Furr added 14 poits and Brittany Roberson added 11.

The Abbey is back in action Thursday night at 5:30 when it goes on the road to face St. Andrews Presbyterian.