CONWAY, SC – The Coastal Carolina women’s basketball squad squandered away a 12-point second half lead and lost to visiting Anderson, 77-74, Nov. 19. Coastal falls to 0-1 after the season opening loss, while the Trojans move to 4-1 on the year.

It was a tight game in the early going, as Coastal built a seven-point lead at 14-7 just under six minutes into the game. However, Anderson battled back and tied it at 25 and 27 before taking the lead at 31-27 with 5:34 to play in the first half. The Lady Chants then put a late run on to go into the halftime lockerroom with a 42-36 advantage.

Coastal pushed the advantage to as much as 13 on four occasions in the second half and led 57-45 with 13:06 to play in the game. That is when the game shifted, as Anderson dominated the boards from there on out, outrebounding the Lady Chanticleers, 15-5 down the stretch, including 10 second chance points. Overall, the Trojans had a 22-5 run over 6:07 to take the lead for good at 67-60 with 6:59 to play in the game. CCU cut it to just one at 75-74 with 2:11 to go, but could not get a rebound on the next two possessions to have a chance at the lead.

CCU was led by junior transfer Kim Turner with 16, while senior Lucia Popovici chipped in 14 on 6-of-9 shooting. Anderson had four in double figures, led by Deanna Thopson with 20, while LaShonda Chiles and Stephanie Ponds chipped in 19 and 17, respectively.

Coastal is back in action when the Lady Chants host Campbell at Kimbel Arena, Tue., Nov. 23 at 7 p.m.