Chris Stiles | The Robesonian
                                UNC Pembroke’s Tiara Williams (23) attempts a shot during Monday’s game at Mount Olive.
                                 Chris Stiles | The Robesonian

Chris Stiles | The Robesonian

UNC Pembroke’s Tiara Williams (23) attempts a shot during Monday’s game at Mount Olive.

Chris Stiles | The Robesonian

<p>Chris Stiles | The Robesonian</p>
                                <p>UNC Pembroke’s Kelci Adams (3) attempts a 3-point shot during Monday’s game at Mount Olive.</p>
                                 <p>Chris Stiles | The Robesonian</p>

Chris Stiles | The Robesonian

UNC Pembroke’s Kelci Adams (3) attempts a 3-point shot during Monday’s game at Mount Olive.

Chris Stiles | The Robesonian

MOUNT OLIVE — The University of North Carolina at Pembroke women’s basketball team fought valiantly from behind in the fourth quarter on the road at undefeated Mount Olive Monday.

But the deficit that had been deepened late in the third quarter proved to be too big to conquer as the Braves fell by a 61-53 final.

UNCP (9-6, 7-4 Conference Carolinas) trailed 47-34 at the start of the fourth quarter, but got within four points before their momentum stalled in the closing minutes.

“I thought we made a nice run and got some stops,” UNCP coach John Haskins said. “We got some opportunities around the basket late and could’ve made some layups. You’ve got to make those plays if you want to beat a good team.”

The Braves started the fourth quarter with a 15-4 run and trailed 51-49 with 3:29 to go.

Two free throws by Zaria Clark and a traditional 3-point play by Courtney Smith started the run; Alcenia Purnell then hit a 3-pointer on a possession kept alive by a Gabby Smith offensive rebound to make it 47-42 with 6:28 to go.

After a Sherry Johnson basket for Mount Olive (11-0, 9-0 CC), Kelci Adams answered with a 3-pointer for the Braves. Haleigh Crews hit a jumper for the Trojans before Tiara Williams and Gabby Smith each made layups on the next two UNCP possessions to make it 51-49.

From that point, though, Mount Olive went on a 10-2 run to end the Braves’ comeback bid. Azariah Fields hit a layup and a 3-pointer on back-to-back trips for a 56-49 lead. Gabby Smith hit another layup for UNCP, but the Braves wouldn’t score again until the final 10 seconds; Crews hit a layup and Ivanda Hudjakova hit three free throws to further extend Mount Olive’s lead.

UNCP trailed 42-34 before a sequence over the last two minutes of the third quarter widened the gap entering the fourth. The Braves got a second chance offensively after a missed layup, but an open 3-point attempt to pull within five was missed; at the other end, Mount Olive got two offensive rebounds on a possession resulting in a Johnson layup. On the Trojans’ next possession, Hudjakova hit a triple to give the Trojans a 13-point lead with 30 seconds left in the period.

“We got it inside, missed it, kicked it back out, (missed), that’s big and then they got a runout (layup),” Haskins said. “A game like that against a good team, it’s every possession and you’ve got to make plays.”

Azariah Fields scored 21 points with seven rebounds, eight assists and three steals for Mount Olive; Johnson finished with 15 points and eight rebounds.

“(Fields is) a good player, she’s a volume shooter,” Haskins said. “They get late in the shot clock, they’re always going to ball screen with her. She made us pay; I thought taking 22 (shots), it wasn’t terrible (allowing 21 points), but we had some breakdowns and let her get to the rim.”

Purnell and Zaria Clark each scored 12 points to lead UNCP; Clark had eight rebounds and Purnell had five. Courtney Smith scored 10 points. Gabby Smith was held to four points — albeit on two key baskets during the fourth-quarter run — as she was in foul trouble the entire game and played 17 minutes.

Mount Olive led 19-14 after the first quarter; UNCP closed to a 22-18 score before Mount Olive went on an 8-0 run to take a 30-18 lead with 5:48 left in the half. The Braves were able to answer with a 7-0 run despite going 1-for-9 from the field in the second quarter, with a Kelci Adams 3-pointer coming during the run; UNCP trailed 30-25 before Fields hit the final basket of the half to give the Trojans a 32-25 halftime advantage.

“I’ll go back to the first half; our turnovers and then we go 1-for-9 from the floor in the second quarter,” Haskins said. “They’re a good team, and they’re a good team at home, and it’s hard to shoot yourself in the foot as many times as we did. I think if you go back through the course of the game we probably missed four or five wide-open layups, so that’s a difference in the game too.”

The Trojans extended their lead to 42-31 with 2:37 left in the third; Purnell hit a 3-pointer to make it 42-34 before the end-of-quarter sequence that gave Mount Olive its 13-point advantage.

UNCP is scheduled to travel to Converse Friday and North Greenville Saturday, pending the possibility of inclement weather.

Chris Stiles can be reached at 910-816-1977 or by email at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter at @StilesOnSports.