HENRICO, Va. | Rakiyah Beal finished with 16 points and Moses Davenpoort added 14, but it wasn't enough to slow down Richmond as the Alabama A&M University women's basketball team fell, 72-58, in the 4 Tha Culture Holiday Classic on Saturday afternoon at the Henrico Sports & Events Center.
Alabama A&M (4-8) couldn't get much going offensively in the first period, going 3-for-14 from the floor as Richmond took a 14-point lead into the second quarter. The Spiders (10-3) shot 45.0 percent (9-of-20) from behind the 3-point line and led, 41-27, at the break and held a 59-42 lead entering the final period.
Beal scored 10 of her team-high 16 points in the second half, going 7-for-14 from the floor, with three rebounds, two steals, one assist and one block. Davenport tossed in 14 points, going 6-of-8 from the field, with nine boards, two assists and one steal, while
Kalia Walker chipped in 11 points, three boards and one steal.
Rachel Ullstrom went 7-of-14 from the floor, including six 3-pointers, to lead Richmond with 20 points and six boards, while Maggie Doogie added 15 points, seven boards, six assists, two steals and one blocked shot.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Alabama A&M struggled early as Richmond jumped out to an 13-0 lead after a layup by Tierra Simon with 5:25 remaining in the opening quarter and took a 21-7 advantage into the second period.
Buckets by
Jaida Belton and
Amber Scott closed the gap to 24-11 with just over eight minutes to play in the first half, but back came the Spiders, using a 7-2 run, capped by an Alicia Newell triple to extend the advantage to 32-13 with 6:26 left.
The Bulldogs continued to battle from behind as
Kalia Walker completed a four-point play and Davenport scored on back-to-back buckets to close the gap to 41-25 with 1:22 remaining.
Richmond went the final 2:48 of the second period without a point as Alabama A&M trimmed the deficit to 41-27 at the half.
Free throws by Davenport cut the deficit to 49-36 with 5:28 remaining in the third, but Richmond responded with an 8-2 run, capped by an Ullstrom trey to push the advantage to 57-38 with just over three minutes left in the frame.
Alabama A&M began the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run, closing the gap to 59-49 after a Beal triple with just under eight minutes to play, but back came Richmond as Doogan scored on back-to-back layups to push the margin to 63-49 with just over five minutes to play.
The Bulldogs never got any closer than 12 points during the final five minutes as Richmond picked up the victory.
GAME NOTES
- Alabama A&M shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the floor and 57.1 percent (4-of-7) from the free-throw line
- The Bulldogs grabbed 28 rebounds, with 22 coming on the defensive end
- Rakiyah Beal registered 16 points, three rebounds, two steals, one assist and one block
- Moses Davenport tossed in 14 points, nine boards, two assists and one steal
- Kalia Walker chipped in 11 points, three boards and one steal.
- Alabama A&M finished with 34 points in the paint, 14 bench points, 10 points off 11 Richmond turnovers, eight second-chance points and six fastbreak points
- Richmond went 26-of-61 shooting (42.6 percent) and 6-of-8 (75.0 percent) from the charity stripe
- The Spiders grabbed 36 rebounds, including 13 on the offensive glass
- Rachel Ullstrom recorded 20 points and six boards
- Maggie Doogie added 15 points, seven boards, six assists, two steals and one blocked shot
- Richmond finished with 25 bench points, 24 points in the paint, 12 points off 10 AAMU turnovers, 10 second-chance points and six fastbreak points
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M opens Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) play on Jan. 1 as the Bulldogs visit Mississippi Valley State. Tip-off against the Devilettes is scheduled for 4 p.m. and streamed on SWAC TV.
For complete coverage of Alabama A&M Athletics – Huntsville's only Division I program - check out the official homepage at www.aamusports.com. Remember to follow us on social media: Instagram (@aamuathletics), Facebook (aamubulldogathletics), Twitter (@_aamuathletics) and TikTok (aamuathletics).
