Lady Firebirds Rise to the Occasion, Win UDC Classic

Washington, DC: November 23, 2008—The University of the District of Columbia Lady Firebirds were gracious hostesses this weekend, but didn’t let their genteel hospitality  get in the way of the business at hand, as they rose to the occasion and won the 2nd Annual UDC Women’s Basketball Classic this afternoon at the Physical Activities Center. UDC’s sophomore forward Lillian McGill (Sumter, SC) was voted the Most Valuable Player in the Classic, scoring a total of 27 points and grabbing 20 rebounds to lead the Lady Firebirds to the championship.

UDC started their way to the Classic victory by defeating the Davis & Elkins Lady Senators 86-66 on Saturday, with senior forward Deshyia Williams (Camden, NJ) leading the way with 15 points and 6 rebounds, McGill with a double-double 14 points and 13 rebounds, and senior guard LaQuanda Brandon (Washington, DC) chipping in with 12 points and 2 rebounds. UDC led most of the game, opening up as many as a 24 point lead twice, cruising to the win. Two Lady Senators were in double figures, with Teonna Jewell scoring 11 points and collecting 4 rebounds, and Lindsay Holliday scoring 11 points and grabbing 6 rebounds.

The Lady Firebirds shot 53 percent (36 for 58) for the game, made 50 percent (6 for 12) of their three-point shots and made 78 percent (7 for 9) of their free throws.   Davis & Elkins shot only 36 percent (19 of 53) from the field, and 36 percent (4 for 11) from beyond the arc, but made 22 of 28 free throws for a 79 percent completion rate.  

In the final game of the Classic, the Lady Firebirds defeated the Saint Paul’s College Lady Tigers 76-69 in what was a close contest until the last few minutes of the first half when UDC began to pull away and took a 44-34 point lead into the break. Their blazing first half 92 percent free throw shooting (11 for 12) helped propel them to the lead.  

Brandon paced the Lady Firebirds to the win with 18 points and 5 rebounds, while McGill added 13 points and 7 rebounds, and senior guard DeVaughn Hailey (Camden, NJ) contributed 12 points and 1 rebound. UDC shot 43 percent (26 of 61) from the field, and 74 percent from the charity stripe, but only 20 percent (1 for 5) from the three point line.

At one point, the Lady Firebird had as many as a 26 point lead in the second half, when Head Coach Lester L. Butler, Jr., pulled his starters and allowed his bench to finish out the contest, which gave the Lady Tigers an opportunity to cut into the lead and lose by only 7 points. Allukesha Guy provided the leadership for St. Paul’s with 18 points and 5 rebounds, followed by Tatiana Ellis with 15 points and 4 rebounds, and DeAudra Brown added 13 points and 3 rebounds.

Named to the All-Tournament Team were Teonna Jewell (Davis & Elkins), Allukesha Guy ( St. Paul’s), Tatiana Ellis (St. Paul’s ), LaQuandra Brandon (UDC), Lillian McGill (UDC) and Deyshia Williams (UDC).
UDC (4-1) will see their next action on Tuesday, November 35, at home, against Alderson Broaddus College.