GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Sydney Ryan and Sydney James combined to score 30 points and ignite a powerful third quarter rally that helped Furman down North Carolina Central, 73-63, in new year's eve women's basketball action Sunday afternoon at Timmons Arena.

The win improved Furman to 9-6 on the season under first year head coach Pierre Curtis, while the loss dropped NCCU to 5-8 on the campaign.

Ryan tallied nine of her team high 16 points in the third quarter, while James accounted for 10 of her 14 points in the period as Furman outscored NCCU 24-11 in the frame to erase a 36-29 halftime deficit.

The duo combined to go 5-for-5 from 3-point range over the first 10 minutes of the second half to fuel the comeback, with each delivering a trey in an 8-0 run that gave Furman its first lead of the second half at 42-40 following a James fast break layup with 4:40 remaining.

Ryan drained a pair of 3-pointers the rest of the way, her final long range coming with 35 seconds to go to give Furman a 53-47 lead.

North Carolina Central opened the fourth quarter with a pair of baskets to trim the lead to 53-51, but the Paladins responded with a 13-0 burst to take total command, capped off by a Niveya Henley layup for a 66-51 advantage with 5:22 to go.

Ryan, a sophomore forward from Brentwood, Tenn., and James, a senior wing from Ocala, Fla., connected on 11-of-14 field goal attempts in the contest, including 6-of-8 from 3-point range.  Furman shot 9-of-20 from beyond the arc, finishing the game 28-of-65 (43.1 percent).

Kate Johnson followed the Ryan and James in the scoring column with 13 points, and Henley finished with 10.  Johnson's nine rebounds led the Paladins' solid work on the boards that saw Furman, the Southern Conference's top rebounding team, register a 49-33 advantage on the glass.

The Eagles were paced by Kimeira Burks' game high 21 points.

Paraskevi Koilia was credited with a career high 10 assists after stepping in for Paladin starting point guard Kennedy Grier, who did not play due to illness.