SAN ANTONIO — Sophia Aleksandravicius scored a game-high 20 points to lead Davidson to a 69-60 win against UTSA in the final game of the UTSA Thanksgiving Classic on Saturday at the Convocation Center.
Kristen Johnsen chipped in 18 points for the Wildcats (3-3) while the Roadrunners were led by senior Amber Gregg and junior Ashley Gardner, who both netted 14 points.
UTSA (3-3) took an early advantage on jumper by senior Ashleigh Franklin and then took its largest lead of the half, four, on a 3-pointer by Gregg just four minutes into the game. Six minutes later, the Wildcats fought back and took a five-point edge after a Sarah Davis jumper.
Davidson took its largest lead of the period following a 7-0 run, which was capped by a Lax 3-pointer, and took a 30-23 advantage into intermission. The Wildcats were 8-for-9 from the charity stripe, while UTSA only managed to connect on four of its nine attempts.
The Roadrunners cut into the lead in the opening minutes of the second half, but an 8-0 Davidson run extended the edge to 13 (40-27) with 15 minutes to play.
UTSA would not go away and it used a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to four. Gregg got the momentum going with a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer from Gardner was sandwiched between a jumper and layup from Franklin during the stretch.
Davidson answered with an 8-2 streak to restore the lead to double digits at 48-38, but it quickly was cut in half on one possession. Gregg hit a 3-pointer and senior Cori Cooper was fouled down low as the ball went through the net. Cooper promptly made both free throws for the rare five-point play.
However, each time the Roadrunners got close, Aleksandravicius or Johnsen came up with an inside basket or free throws to extend the lead.
UTSA made a final push in the last minute, cutting the lead to five on a steal and Gardner layup with 32 seconds to play, but the Wildcats iced the game from the free throw line by hitting four freebies in the final 25 seconds.
Despite a size disadvantage, the Roadrunners only were outrebounded by one (37-36), but Davidson used their size to score 30 points in the paint.
Meanwhile, UTSA scored 25 points off 19 turnovers, but shot just 32 percent for the game.
The loss concluded the Roadrunners’ season-opening six-game home stand. They will kick off a three-game road swing on Tuesday night at Texas Tech (6-0). Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at United Spirit Arena.
All-Tournament Team
Sophia Aleksandravicius, Davidson
Jasmine Godbolt, North Texas
Amber Gregg, UTSA
Kristen Johnsen, Davidson
Taleya Mayberry, Tulsa
