The Albion College women's basketball team had not exactly been filling up the basket as often as they would've liked to in its three games prior to Saturday afternoon, but the Britons found piled more points than they have all season in a 73-58 rout of the Saint Mary's Belles.
After nearly two minutes without a bucket, the Britons opened up a 15-2 run thanks to outstanding play by their veteran guards Tanner Johnson, Brett De Bear and Taylor Peruchietti.
The Belles closed the gap to seven points with an 8-2 run of their own midway through the first half, but Albion countered quickly with two free-throws and a three-point play for Johnson.
The Britons were able to stretch their lead to 16 points by halftime after getting to the charity stripe 20 times and converting 15 of those attempts.
Following the intermission, Albion picked up right where it left off in the opening 20 minutes of action. The Belles did not let the Britons run away with the game until about seven minutes into the second half, though Saint Mary's was never able to significantly cut into Albion's lead until the reserves were pushed into action late in the game.
Johnson led all scorers with 21 points for the second straight game, while deBear knocked down five-of-14 field goal attempts for 18 points to go along with nine rebounds.
First-year forward Darian Payne and junior small forward Danielle Fraley also chipped in eight points apiece.
The victory is Albion's fourth in a row at Kresge Gymnasium, and allowed the Britons to improve to 3-8 in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association play. Albion boasts a 7-14 overall record, while the Belles dropped to 5-17 on the year and are now 3-10 in MIAA games.
The Britons will be back in action on Wednesday evening when they host the Alma Scots. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m. EST.
