Traya Bruce Drops 26 Points in Exhibition Win Against West Alabama

NEW ORLEANS - A 28-9 second quarter and 31 turnovers forced lifted the New Orleans Privateers to an 84-64 win over the West Alabama Tigers on Saturday at the Lakefront Arena.
Traya Bruce had a sensational game, banking 26 points on 6-of-9 from the field and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe. Shania Woods also had a strong stat line with 24 points and 15 rebounds. Jada Duncantell also netted double figures with 13 points.
 
Dionjhae Thomas added eight points and two assists. Whitley Larry had six rebounds, three assists, three steals, and two blocks. The Privateers shot 51.5 percent from the field in the first half and went to the locker room with a 24-point lead. Kayla Thomas had four points, three rebounds, and two steals in nine minutes before having to leave the game due to injury.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The second quarter provided an explosion of points for the home side with New Orleans outscoring the Tigers 28-9. Bruce had 14 points and four assists in the opening half to help lead the charge after getting the starting call in her first collegiate game. It turned out to ultimately be the difference in the contest.
 
West Alabama did cut the deficit down to 12 early in the fourth quarter. The Tigers used the free throw line and held the Privateers to 4-of-16 from the field throughout the third quarter. In the third, West Alabama went 10-of-13 from the free throw line.
However, New Orleans pulled away again as the Tigers were over the foul limit with more than seven minutes left in the quarter. The Privateers also out-rebounded West Alabama as a unit 14-9 in the final quarter and held a 44-42 advantage for the game.
 
New Orleans smothered West Alabama as they steadily pulled away to a seven-point lead at the end of the quarter and a 24-point lead at half. The Privateers forced double the number of turnovers they committed (18-9) over the first 20 minutes and had all seven fast break points.
 
FROM COACH DAVENPORT
"During the transition I'm sure everyone was anxious to see what we would look like. I always have been focused on defense and if we take care of the defense, then the offense will come. When I see we forced 31 turnovers, that means we did what were supposed to do on defense."
 
"We practice loose ball drills and I couldn't be more proud of the multiple effort plays. I thought we fought hard and I thought they really left it out there on the floor."
 
"Traya is just a fundamentally sound player and she works extremely hard. I can play her at the one, two, or three. She did not look like a freshman playing her first game. She looked smooth as butter."
 
NEXT UP
The Privateers will open their regular season on Tuesday when they take on Centenary at the Lakefront Arena. Tip is slated for 5:30 p.m. and will be the front end of a doubleheader. The men's team will follow against Spring Hill.
 
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