Conway, S.C. – Kristin Williams scored 21 points and Alancia Ramsey added 20 as Coastal Carolina built a 16-point lead and then hung on for a 73-65 win over Buffalo in a non-conference women's basketball game Saturday afternoon at the HTC Center. The matchup was part of the Mid-American-Sun Belt challenge.
 
The high-scoring duo was supported by Savannah Brooks, who had 15 points. Williams got most of her points from long range, hitting 6 three-pointers, while Ramsey got her points from close range. Ramsey also had 11 rebounds to earn her sixth double-double of the season. The win lifted Coastal to 17-6 overall and 11-1 at home. 
 
"Our kids fought hard and played tough today. Buffalo is a physical defensive team, and it took time for us to adjust," said Coastal head coach Kevin Pederson. "Kristin hit some tough shots and some big shots for us. With Kristin and Savannah, we are hard to defend. And Alancia did a good job on the inside."
 
Chellia Watson hit for 21 points to lead Buffalo, which slipped to 19-4 overall.
 
Coastal built a 16-point lead in the third quarter and still led by 58-46 with 6:30 remining in the game and survived despite making only 3-of-14 free throw attempts down the stretch. The silver lining in the final minutes came from two three-pointers by Williams, who finished 6-of-13 from long range.
 
Coastal got off to a sluggish start but trailed by just six points at the end of the first quarter. A 13-4 scoring burst by the Chanticleers to start the second quarter changed things, with Riley Stack, Williams and Jayden Marable hitting three-pointers in the run that put the Chants in front 19-16. Williams and Dalanna Carter added three-pointers later in the quarter, helping Coastal to a 30-26 advantage at halftime. Williams had eight of her points at the break, while Watson had 10 for Buffalo.
 
From there, the Chants ignited their second half with a 9-0 scoring burst, with Williams again playing a big part, hitting a three-pointer and a free throw. And when Ramsey scored on a layup on an assisting pass from Marable, the lead grew to 16 points, at 48-32, with two minutes remaining in the third quarter.
 
Coastal shot 49 percent for the game (25-for-51), and 35 percent from long range (9-of-26) but hit just 14-of-29 free throws (48 percent). But Coastal made up for any shortcomings by owning the backboards by a 43-28 margin.
 
Ramsey led the way, but she had help from Brooks, who had nine rebounds to fall just one rebound short of a double-double.
 
Coastal now hits the road for two away games in the conference next week – at Georgia Southern and at Marshall – before coming back to close the regular season with four consecutive home games from Feb. 19-28.
 
For complete coverage of CCU women's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalWBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUsports.com.