Box Score RICHMOND, Va. – Courtney Hurt and Andrea Barbour each had a game-high 22 points to lead Virginia Commonwealth to a 79-59 win over the Norfolk State women's basketball team Wednesday afternoon at Verizon Wireless Arena.

NSU shot just 28 percent in the first half as the Rams built a 28-point halftime lead. The Spartans outscored VCU by eight in the second half and ended the game on a 16-2 run for the final 20-point margin. NSU fell to 5-5 on the season, while VCU saw its record improve to 7-3 overall.

Senior Whitney Long had a team-high 19 points for the Spartans, while sophomore Rachel Gordon also joined her in double figures with 12 points and a team-high six rebounds.

The Spartans hit 41.5 percent for the game on 22-of-53 shooting, compared to 39.7 percent for the Rams, despite the percentages being 50.0 - 28.0 in favor of VCU at the break. The Rams hit 29-of-73 for the game, including 6-of-22 (27.3 percent) from beyond the arc. NSU sank 4-of-9 from long range.

VCU had a 29-14 edge in points off turnovers despite having just six less giveaways than NSU. The Spartans had 19 turnovers for the game but just five in the second half as they shot better than 53 percent in the second stanza. The Rams converted on slightly less than 31 percent of their shots in the second half.

Sophomore Rae Corbo had eight points with three assists and two steals for NSU, while freshman Ebony Brown contributed seven points on the afternoon.

A pair of jumpers by Long helped NSU tie things up at 7-7 to start the game, as the Spartans took advantage of a pair of early VCU turnovers. The Rams, though, went on a subsequent 19-2 run for a 17-point lead before Long broke the drought with a trey at the 8:04 mark.

Gordon added a pair of baskets as the half wore on, but the Rams continued to exert control. Barbour tallied 16 points in the half as VCU went into the break with a 46-18 lead. Hurt added 10 in the first stanza, while Long led NSU with 11.

The Rams converted 14 Spartan turnovers into 22 points in the first half.

Gordon converted a pair of shots prior to the first media timeout of the second half, but Hurt went on a scoring spree, and Robyn Hobson added a pair of treys to help stretch the lead to 35. Gordon added two more baskets before having to exit with four fouls, and junior Marian Brooks completed a 3-point play with 9:27 left before the Rams eventually went up by 34, 77-43, with 6:39 to go.

The Spartans, though, went on a 16-2 run to end the game after that point. Brown and Long knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, while sophomore Carlon Chambers later added a trio of free throws. Long's fastbreak basket with 15 seconds left got NSU to within 20, 79-59, and completed the game's scoring.

Hurt and Barbour were the only players in double figures for VCU, as Christina Carter added eight and three other players scored six points each. Hurt also tallied a game-high eight rebounds with four blocks, three steals and two assists.

VCU held a 44-35 edge on the boards, helped by 26 offensive rebounds, and outblocked the Spartans, 7-1.

NSU will now break for the holiday before heading to the Hawk Holiday Classic Dec. 29-30 at Monmouth. The Spartans will face the host Hawks on Day 1, followed by either Villanova or St. Bonaventure on Day 2.