WISE - - Freshman Nia Vanzant came off the bench to net a season-high 22 points to tie senior Cynita Webb for team-high scoring honors as UVA Wise claimed an 87-64 victory over Mars Hill in the South Atlantic Conference opener for both schools at the Prior Center Tuesday.

UVA Wise (4-1, 1-0 SAC) entered the game ranked 14th nationally in scoring offense at 84.8 points per game but it was the defense Jamie Cluesman's team displayed in the opening 10 minutes that set the stone.

Mars Hill (1-5, 0-0 SAC) connected on just 3-of-14 field goal attempts in the opening quarter as the visitors fell behind by as many as 10 points late in the first period.

The slow start proved to be too much to overcome for the Lions who fell behind by as many as 25 points in the contest.

Vanzant was the catalyst for the Cavaliers as she scored seven of her 22 points in the first quarter. The Murfreesboro, Tenn. product entered the contest with her team leading 6-4 and immediately made an impact. Vanzant would go a perfect 2-for-2 from the field while making 3-of-4 free throw attempts in five minutes of action in the first quarter.

Leading 19-15 going to the second quarter, the Cavs took their second double digit lead of the game with a 7-0 scoring spurt over a 90 second stretch. Ada Stanley sank a foul shot before back-to-back 3-pointers by Mackenzie King and Vanzant made it a 31-21 game midway through the second quarter.

Consecutive buckets by Kalee Johnson and Webb to close the half would send the hosts to intermission with a 38-26 lead.

After making just 13-of-34 field goal attempts in the opening 20 minutes, UVA Wise would make a blistering 58.6 percent (17-29) of its field goal attempts in the second half. Cluesman's team did the bulk of its damage on the interior as the Cavs netted 22 of its 34 points in the paint in the final 20 minutes.

The 5-foot-11 Webb netted 15 of her 22 points in the second half while Stanley tossed in six of her 13 points in the half.

Mars Hill's De'Ja Marshall led all players with 23 points while grabbing 13 rebounds, Tatum Boggs added 18 points in the loss.

UVA Wise won the battle of the boards 47-to-37 as five players had five or more rebounds in the win. The double-double was the 30th of Webb's career and the fourth of the season. Following the 22-point output, Webb stands at 900 career points.

Point guard Caitlyn Ross continued her strong play by tallying 16 points, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out seven assists. As a team, the Cavs assisted on 22-of-30 field goals.

With the win, UVA Wise won its conference opener for the second consecutive season while improving to 4-and-0 all-time against Mars Hill.

Next up, Cluesman's crew welcomes No. 17 Anderson to the Prior Center Saturday in a 2 p.m. tip.