ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Santa Fe College women's basketball fell into a 16-point halftime deficit at St. Petersburg College on Saturday afternoon in Central Conference play, and the Saints could never recover in an 87-62 defeat to the Titans.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The opening quarter was well-played, and the Saints were neck-and-neck with SPC, trailing by just four, 25-21, at the end of the frame.

Malea Brown had seven first quarter points to pace SF on the offensive end.

St. Petersburg, however, who entered the day's game with a four-game winning streak, controlled the second quarter and grabbed a 48-32 halftime lead.

The Titans held a significant advantage in the rebounding category and locked in defensively to hold SF to just 25 percent shooting in the quarter, outscoring SF 23-11.

SF drew to within 12 points, 48-36, with back-to-back baskets from Isabella Reynolds and Khalea Douglas early in the second half, but that was as close as St. Petersburg would let the Saints get the rest of the way in the first of three matchups this season between the two sides.

UPDATED RECORDS

Santa Fe – 7-11, 0-3 Central

St. Petersburg – 15-6, 3-0 Central

KEY STATISTICS

SPC outrebounded SF 58-42, earned 17 points from the free-throw line, and forced 25 SF turnovers.

The loss was the Saints' sixth consecutive defeat, three of which have come at the start of Central Conference play.

Brown returned from a two-game absence and contributed a team-high 14 points. Joey Delancy added 11 points, five rebounds, and five assists, Reynolds scored ten, and Selah Reddick had seven points and 11 rebounds as the team's leading rebounder.

UP NEXT

The Saints (7-11, 0-3 Central) will play the final nonconference game of the 2022-2023 schedule at home on Wednesday, Jan. 18, hosting DME Academy for a 5:00 p.m. tipoff.