Strong 2nd Half Lifts Raiders over Lady Pirates, 68-58

NICEVILLE, Fla. - Northwest Florida overcame a 10 point deficit in the first half to Pensacola State by scoring 51 points in the second half to come away with a 68-58 victory over the Pirates. The Raiders improve their record to 19-2, 7-0 in Panhandle Conference play.

It was a tale of two halves for the Raiders as the offense scored 17 points in the first half and committed 21 turnovers. In the first half, the Raiders were 5-19 (26.3%) from the field. The Raiders were much better in the second half from the floor as they connected on 14 of 26 shots (53.8%), while only turning the ball over 7 times. 

A completely different team came out of the locker room in the second half. Northwest Florida leaned on Sakima Walker and Destiney McPhaul to take over the game, and they did just that. Walker ended the night with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks while McPhaul recorded 11 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. 

Northwest Florida dominated the glass tonight as they outrebounded the Pirates 50-26. Despite only leading the game for less than 7 minutes, the Raiders came up big when it mattered. Zayla Tinner was a difference maker as she grabbed 7 defensive rebounds and chipped in 15 points on the night, knocking down 8-10 free throws.

#3 Northwest Florida (19-2, 7-0) will head to Panama City on Wednesday, February 8th to take on the Gulf Coast Commodores. The Commodores (19-2, 4-2) are ranked 7th in the country. The Raiders came away with a 73-60 win in the first matchup. 

For more information on Northwest Florida athletics, visit NWFRaiders.com or follow @NWFRaiders on Twitter and Instagram.