CHICAGO, Ill. -- The University of Chicago women's basketball team took a 20-point lead in the first half and shot 50 percent for the game to defeat Carnegie Mellon University 76-60 on Sunday.

The Maroons improved to 7-13 overall, 3-6 in conference games. The Tartans fell to 11-9 overall, 3-6 in the UAA.

It didn't take long for UChicago to get the momentum rolling in its favor. Over a nine-minute time period in the first half, the Maroons outscored the Tartans 22-2 and seized control of the game. The home team owned the boards, scored second-chance points and were the more aggressive team. Carnegie Mellon couldn't find an offensive flow and only made three of its first 24 shots.

The Maroons were up 32-12 when a rash of turnovers cut into their lead. The Tartans got more physical and active with their defensive traps and forced nine turnovers in the final six minutes of the half. The halftime lead was 36-24 in favor of the Maroons, who shot 52 percent from the field and led the rebounding column 29-15.

UChicago reestablished control of the game with an 8-1 run to open the second half. But turnovers kept things interesting as CMU whittled the lead down to nine points with 7:50 remaining in the game. With the score at 56-47, UChicago guard Paige Womack took over and scored 12 points over the next four-and-a-half minutes. The Maroons kept the margin comfortably in double digits for the rest of the way.

Carnegie Mellon ended up with 15 steals and scored 24 points off 27 UChicago turnovers. However, the Tartans hit only one three-pointer on 19 attempts. The Maroons won the rebounding battle 46-36.

UChicago Team Stats & Leaders
Field-goal percentage - 50.0 percent (25-50)
Three-point percentage - 54.5 percent (6-11)
Free-throw percentage - 74.1 percent (20-27)
Paige Womack - 20 points, 9 rebounds
Claire Devaney - 13 points, 11 rebounds
Ellie Greiner - 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks

Carnegie Mellon Team Stats & Leaders
Field-goal percentage - 32.5 percent (25-77)
Three-point percentage - 5.3 percent (1-19)
Free-throw percentage - 69.2 percent (9-13)
Jacquie Shaw - 17 points, 4 steals, 4 rebounds
Liza Otto - 10 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals

NEXT GAME: Friday, Feb. 8 - Rochester University at UChicago, 6 PM.