WILMINGTON, N.C. – Graduate guard Rori Cox recorded 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists for UNCW women's basketball in the Seahawks' 80-56 home-opening setback against Coastal Carolina on Wednesday night at Trask Coliseum.
UNCW dipped to 1-2 overall, while Coastal Carolina won its second straight to improve to 2-2 on the season.
Cox entered the game ranking sixth in the Coastal Athletic Association with 15.5 points per game. The graduate guard recorded at least 20 points and five rebounds for the second straight game, the first Seahawk to do so since Ali Zelaya, who earned USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale Player of the Week honors for the feat last February.
Kylah Silver, a redshirt sophomore guard, also scored in double figures for the second time this season, finishing with 12 points and six rebounds. Senior guard Kate Hollifield finished with nine points and four rebounds for the Seahawks
UNCW shot 20-for-60 (33%) from the field and only 4-for-22 (18.2%) from 3-point distance, while Coastal Carolina went 29-for-74 (39.2%) from the field and shot 10-for-25 (40%) from beyond the arc.
The Chanticleers entered the game 11th in the nation in 3-point attempts, averaging 32.3 per game. Coastal Carolina outrebounded UNCW 50-40, including a 20-3 edge on the offensive glass.
Coastal Carolina had five players score in double figures, led by 23 points from junior forward Tessa Grady, who made five three-pointers for the second straight game.
Coastal Carolina led by as many as 21 midway through the third quarter and ended the quarter with a 16-point lead, despite UNCW allowing just one field goal during the final three and a half minutes of the quarter.
The Chanticleers flipped the script in the fourth quarter, holding UNCW without a field goal for a five-plus-minute stretch in the final quarter en route to victory.
The Chanticleers had a 38-27 lead at halftime, recording 12 offensive rebounds in the first half while having a 16-8 edge in points in the paint.
UNCW started slow, shooting just 3-for-17 (18%) from the field in the opening quarter and trailed by eight after the first 10 minutes of play.
The Seahawks will travel to Gardner-Webb (0-3) on Wednesday, Nov. 19, for a 7 p.m. contest. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
