MOBILE, Ala. — Bo Browder, in his 10th season as the women's basketball coach at Xavier University of Louisiana, called it "the best first half I've ever been around." He had plenty of evidence to support his statement.
     Browder's Gold Nuggets had a pair of 16-2 runs, a 13-2 run, shot 60 percent from the floor and gained 16 turnovers in the first half of a 74-65 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference victory over Mobile on Saturday.
     The big first half gave Xavier a 53-25 halftime lead and enough cushion to set up the Nuggets' season-high-tying fifth consecutive victory and their first at Mobile since 2004.
     Brittany Powell led Xavier (21-7 overall, 12-4 GCAC) with 10 points and was one of nine Nuggets to score five or more. LaTashia Wise and Shayla Boyd added nine points apiece, and freshman walk-on Ebubechi Okwumabua scored a career-high seven — two more than she had in her first 15 games this season.
     "Everything we worked on in practice worked in the first half," Browder said. "We shot the ball well. The defense was outstanding."
     Danielle Goodly scored 19 points for Mobile (12-16, 5-11), Sherri McIntosh had 15 points and 19 rebounds, and Gerica Johnson scored 14. Each scored 10 points during a second-half comeback which brought the Lady Rams no closer than seven points.
     Xavier remained in third place in the GCAC — two games behind Loyola and one game behind LSU-Shreveport, both road winners Saturday — but William Carey's 57-48 loss at SUNO assured the Nuggets of no worse than the No. 3 seed in the GCAC Tournament. Xavier will play its final regular-season home game at 5:30 p.m. Thursday against Spring Hill.