LAKELAND, Fla. – Firing on all cylinders, the Nova Southeastern women's basketball team used a 27-point halftime lead to top the No. 3 seed West Florida Argonauts, 87-78, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Christen Prasse once again was making headlines, tallying a career-high and NSU record 39 points on 9-of-10 shooting from three-point range and 13-of-16 from the field. Her nine made three-pointers not only tie NSU record, but also the NCAA Tournament record for most in a game.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
FINAL: W, 87-78
RECORDS: Nova Southeastern University Sharks (20-11), University of West Florida Argonauts (24-6)
LOCATION: George W. Jenkins Fieldhouse | Lakeland, Fla.    
FOLLOW US: @NSUSHARKS on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
1ST QUARTER | The Sharks wasted no time grabbing the lead with back-to-back three-pointers by Christen Prasse and Claire McMahon, never looking back. After a split pair of free throws and a layup by West Florida, NSU hit the Argos with another pair of consecutive treys, this time by Prasse and Alison Hughes, giving the Sharks a 12-3 lead at the 5:57 mark and forcing West Florida to call for a timeout. NSU didn't let up, however, going up by as many as 10 points (17-7), before taking an eight-point lead (17-9) into the second quarter.
 
2ND QUARTER | In their highest scoring quarter of the season, the Sharks connected on 6-of-9 three-pointers, 11-of-17 from the field and 7-of-7 from the charity stripe. The first half of the quarter saw the Sharks explode on a 20-8 run, including a nine-point run by Prasse herself, before a jumper by Megan Piggott pushed NSU out to a 20-point lead (37-17) at the 4:34 mark. NSU continued to put on the pressure, earning its largest lead of the game, 29 points (52-23), at the 1:12 mark with a three by Hughes. A jumper by UWF's Toni Brewer closed out scoring for the half, as NSU took a 52-25 lead into the break.
 
3RD QUARTER | West Florida woke up in the third quarter, using a 13-2 run over the first 4:40 of the frame, before a three-pointer by Prasse. Another run by the Argos, this time 7-0, cut NSU's lead to 12 (57-45) at the 3:25 mark, but the Sharks were able to outscore UWF 11-8 the remainder of the quarter to hold a significant 18-point lead (71-53) with just one quarter to go.
 
4TH QUARTER | Similar to the frame prior, the Argos took advantage of a 12-3 run to start the quarter, cutting the deficit to single digits for the first time since the early parts of the second quarter, 74-65. An and-one play by Piggott pushed it back out to double digits, sparking a 9-4 run to give the Sharks an 85-69 lead with 2:07 to go. UWF attempted to make a comeback, tallying seven unanswered points, but it wasn't enough as the Sharks eventually ended up on top, 87-78.
 
INSIDE THE STATS:
 

• Prasse led all players with her 39 points, while also adding nine rebounds and five assists.
• Hughes was next with 18 points, shooting 3-of-8 from deep and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the line. She also pulled down two boards and had two assists.
• Maria Bardeeva tied Prasse with nine rebounds, two offensive, while Mikayla Thompson had six of her own, adding three assists.
• Piggott tallied eight points and Katie Barnard had seven, with two rebounds.

 
 
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
 

• Prasse's 39-point night was her first 30-point performance of her career. Her nine made three-pointers tie NSU's record set by Meixandra Porter set on Nov. 9, 2012, while also tying the NCAA Tournament record.
• She was also 90.0 percent from deep, a new program-best, topping Amanda Burakowski's 85.7 percent set on Dec. 17, 2013.

 
 
UP NEXT:
 
The Sharks will head to the South Region Championship on Monday evening, facing off against Florida Southern for the fourth time this season. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
 
 
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Follow along with live updates on Twitter by following @NSU_WBasketball.