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Senior Mariah Wilson scored a career-high 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting, leading a group of five players in double figures, as the Longwood women made it five in a row. They beat UNC Asheville 95-51 in Big South action on Wednesday.

The Lancers shot 53.6 percent (37-of-69) on the night, including 59.5 percent in the first half, to move to 12-5 overall and remain perfect in the Big South at 3-0 with their eighth win in the last nine games. With the win, Longwood earned victories in its first three Big South games for just the third time in history, joining the 2021-22 and 2012-13 teams.

“We took care of business,” said Longwood head coach Erika Lang-Montgomery. “We came out and we played together and we stayed true to who we were. Got scoring from multiple people again tonight … I was proud of our performance tonight.”

Longwood scored the game’s first 10 points and never let up. The Lancers shot 70.6 percent in the opening quarter, connecting on 12-of-17 shots, bolting to a 26-6 lead. LU forced seven UNC Asheville (2-13, 0-2) turnovers and grabbed six steals in the period.

It was more of the same in the second quarter as Longwood put up 28 more points and finished the half with 27 off of turnovers.

“We’re just we’re trying to get better every game. there are still areas that we can improve, like rebounding, taking care of the basketball, but you know when you have a team that loves each other and plays together, good things can happen,” Lang-Montgomery said.

Breaking down the numbers

Wilson scored 15 in the first half while Kiki McIntyre and Amor Harris scored 13 apiece for the game. Frances Ulysse had 12 points and Lili Booker 10 in reserve roles. It marked the third time this season five Lancers scored double figures.

Longwood led, 54-16, at the half and 75-27 at the end of three quarters.

The Lancers enjoyed their biggest lead of the game at 90-35 with 4:50 remaining when Otaifo Esenabhalu knocked in a free throw. A 6-0 run from Asheville in the final 90 seconds kept Longwood from its largest margin of victory in Big South play, which came in a 94-48 win over Charleston Southern on Feb. 12, 2021.

Esenabhalu finished with eight points and led all players with nine rebounds to help her team claim a slim 43-39 edge on the boards. Malea Brown chipped in six points, six assists and four steals.

Longwood hit its averages of 16 steals and 27 forced turnovers, converting them into 38 points.

Asheville shot just 29.9 percent from the floor and missed its first 15 3-pointers. The Bulldogs, however, received 18 points, three rebounds and three assists from Alana Swift.

What’s next for Longwood women?

The Longwood women are back home Saturday at 2 p.m., to host Winthrop at the Joan Perry Brock Center.