Monroe scores 33 in Jags victory over A&M

Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, ALA. – In her first tournament appearance at Fair Park Arena, sophomore guard Rolanda Monroe exploded, scoring half of her game high 33 points from the free throw line, shooting 16-of-16.
The Southern University Jaguars women’s basketball team claimed an 84-76 victory against No. 6 seed Alabama A&M University in the quarterfinals of the 2004 Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament.
“It was a fight,” said Monroe. “We battled out hustled them and made enough plays to come away with the victory. We didn’t want to go home”
Monroe, who was named a member of the All-SWAC first team averaging 16.9 points per game, was 8-for-15 from the field and added seven rebounds and six steals.
Two other Jaguars scored in double figures, led by freshman center Fredreika Lewis 16-point, 10-rebound performance and sophomore guard Ashley Blake added 19.
Southern (15-12) led by as much as 20 points with 4:50 remaining on the clock. As a team, they were 35-of-39 (89.7 percent) from the line.
“Alabama A&M didn’t quit they fought the whole game,” said Southern head coach Sandy Pugh. “When we were up by 20 they continued to fight, that says a lot about their program, coaching staff and the kids.”
In the second half, the Lady Bulldogs (12-16) scored 16 points off the Jag’s 12 turnovers committed in the second half. Southern committed 26 turnovers for the game.
With the win, the Jaguars advance to the semifinals at 10 a.m. on Friday to face No. 2 seed Jackson State University, who defeated Texas Southern 51-49.
During conference play, Southern lost to Jackson on January 12, 60-49 at the F.G. Clark Activity Center and again on February 9 in Jackson, 56-53. The Jags defeated Texas Southern on both meetings 53-52 on Jan. 3 in Houston and 60-55 on March 6 in Baton Rouge.
“Our game plan remains to be seen on who will play. Both Jackson State and Texas Southern are different clubs,” said Pugh. “So whomever we play it will be a tough ball game.”