WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Coach Karen Barefoot and the UNCW women's basketball team put the finishing touches on a strong regular season on Friday, Mar. 8, when the Seahawks visit TD Arena for a 6:30 p.m. Colonial Athletic Association tilt against the College of Charleston.
 
Friday's game, which serves as the regular season finale for both teams, can be seen online at CAA.tv while live stats for the contest will be available at UNCWStats.com.
 
UNCW, which has secured a first-round bye in next week's CAA Championship at Delaware, enters Friday's contest with a 17-11 overall record and stand in fifth place in the league's standings after dismissing Hofstra, 61-51, on Sunday afternoon at the Mack Sports Complex.
 
The Seahawks, who rallied from a four-point halftime deficit, earned the sweep over the Pride after outscoring the hosts by a 38-24 margin in the second half. UNCW also had three players score in double figures and held a 42-31 advantage on the boards.
 
Redshirt junior guard GiGi Smith and redshirt senior guard Shrita Parker continue to be one of the top scoring tandems in the CAA, averaging 15.1 points per game apiece. Junior guard Lacey Suggs contributes 10.0 points per contest while senior center Chinyere Bell paces the CAA with a .592 field goal percentage.
 
Charleston, meanwhile, holds the last spot in the CAA's standings at 3-14 in league play while bringing a 7-21 overall mark into its home finale. The Cougars have dropped seven games in a row following an 81-69 setback at Northeastern on Sunday afternoon.
 
Senior guard Darien Huff leads the offensive efforts for the Cougars by scoring 12.8 points per contest while junior guard Deja Ford follows with a 12.5 average.

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Friday's Starting Five
Catch 22 – UNCW junior Timber Tate tallied a career-high 22 points in last year's win at Charleston, sinking 8-of-16 field goal attempts, including a 6-for-10 showing from three-point range.  
 
Doing the Charleston – The Seahawks have won four of the last five meetings against Charleston to take a 13-12 lead in the all-time series.
 
Great Eight – Senior Chinyere Bell posted the Seahawks' eighth double-double of the season in Sunday's win over Hofstra, scoring 16 points while matching a season high with 11 rebounds.
 
Opposite Ends – UNCW ranks second in the CAA with a +2.54 turnover margin while Charleston is last in the 10-team circuit at -3.64.
 
Board Meeting – The Seahawks outrebounded Hofstra by a 42-31 margin on Sunday, marking the largest advantage for the Seahawks on the glass since having an identical 11-rebound edge against the Pride on Feb. 1.  

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Up Next: UNCW begins its quest at the program's first Colonial Athletic Association championship on Thursday, Mar. 14, with a quarterfinal contest at Delaware's Bob Carpenter Center. The opponent and game time will be determined following Saturday's league games.