LIONS NIP SAINTS IN CRUICAL GNAC BATTLE
Feb. 9, 2010
BOSTON, Mass. - The Emerson College Lions shot 42.6% from the floor on Tuesday night en route to a 70-67 win over the host Saints of Emmanuel College. The Great Northeast Athletic Conference women's basketball match-up was a crucial one in determining hosting rights for the upcoming GNAC Tournament. The win for the Lions boosts Emerson to 12-10 overall and 7-2 in league play, while Emmanuel falls to 16-5 on the season and 6-2 in the conference.
The Saints took the first lead of the night on a bucket in the paint by Fiona O'Dwyer (Stamford, Conn.). The Lions battled back from two-straight turnovers to start the game, as Kathy Andrade (Hull, Mass.) connected on a runner in the lane to go along with three Lions' free throws and Emerson led, 5-2. Consecutive hoops by Lauren Zaniboni (San Diego, Calif.) sandwiched a bucket in the paint by Abby Brenkach (Germantown, N.Y.) and the Lions led 9-4. Zaniboni's third-straight score down low put Emerson up 11-6 in the early-going.
Two hoops from Breanna Ockimey (Philadelphia, Pa.) and another from Liz Brooks (Charlton, Mass.) helped the hosts tie things up at 18-all with just over 10 minutes to play in the half. Freshman guard Olivia DiNucci (Pittsburgh, Pa.) drained a three at the 10-minute mark to give the Lions at 21-18 edge.
A lefty baby-hook from Zaniboni pushed the Lions' lead to 25-20 with seven minutes to go in the half. Another trey from DiNucci stretched the Emerson spread to 10-points (30-20) at the five-minute mark. Emerson's quick passing dissected the Emmanuel zone and Andrade scored again down low at 3:58 to force a Saints' time-out with the Lions up 34-22. Another Andrade bucket out of the time-out gave Emerson a 36-22 lead.
An and-one by Iman Davis (Toms River, N.J.) chipped three points off the Lions' lead, before Andrea Kosek (Latham, N.Y.) drilled a baseline jumper for Emerson to bring the score to 38-25 at the two-minute mark. Another Andrade lay-up gave Emerson its largest lead of the night at 40-25 with one minute to go. Two pair of free throws from Davis cut the deficit to 11 points, before Andrade converted a three-point play at the opposite end to bring the score to 43-29 at the break.
Andrade led all scorers at halftime with 15 points on 7 for 8 shooting. Zaniboni added 10 first-half points and DiNucci hauled in 5 boards for the visitors. Davis was the high-scorer for the Saints in the first half with 13 points and 4 assists. Emerson, which shot 53.1% (17-32) from the floor in the first frame and out-rebounded the Saints, 24-22, held the lead throughout the opening twenty minutes of play.
A 4-0 Emerson run kicked off the second half and pushed the spread to 47-29, Lions. This would be Emerson's largest lead of the night, as the Saints began to chip away at the Lions' lead. Davis sparked a 13-2 run by the Saints with two huge hoops in the paint to bring the score to 49-42 at the 15-minute mark. Consecutive Emerson three-balls put the Lions back out in front, 55-42. A hoop by Ockimey and another and-one by Davis cut Emmanuel's deficit back to single digits at 55-46 with 12 minutes to go. A hoop by O'Dwyer and a trey by Kristin LeBel (Tolland, Conn.) capped a 12-0 Emmanuel run and the Saints trailed by one, 55-54, forcing a full time-out by the Lions with ten and a half minutes left.
The Saints' run continued out of the time-out, as O'Dwyer canned a shot in the paint to give Emmanuel its first lead since the opening possession (56-55). The Lions were held scoreless for 5 full minutes during the EC spurt. The two teams exchanged baskets over the next several minutes before Emmanuel called for a full time-out with 6:09 left, trailing, 62-60.
Scoreless ball was played over the next two minutes, before Jackie Williams (Lorton, Va.) gave the Lions a four-point advantage with under four to play. A hoop by DiNucci was answered with a triple from LeBel and the Saints called for a time-out down three (66-63) with 3:11 on the clock.
Two-straight hoops in the paint by Brenkach put Emmanuel back out in front, 67-66, with 1:45 left. Zaniboni knotted the contest at 67-all on a free throw with 1:39 on the clock. An Emmanuel turnover gave the Lions possession with a full shot clock, when Kosek drew a foul on a drive through the lane. The senior guard hit one of two from the line and gave the Lions a 68-67 lead.
Emmanuel was unsuccessful on two shots down low and the Lions grabbed the defensive rebound with 5.7 ticks left on the clock. The Saints fouled quickly, sending Kosek back to the line for a pair of tries with 4.9 seconds left. She connected on both and Emerson pulled away with the three-point win, 70-67.
Andrade finished with 19 points, leading a quartet of Lions scoring in double figures. Zaniboni scored 16 points and grabbed 8 boards. DiNucci added 11 points and hauled in 7 rebounds, while Williams netted 10 points and dished out 5 assists for the Lions. Emerson's solid shooting continued in the second half, as the Lions went 26-61 form the floor for 42.6% shooting on the night.
Davis led all scorers with 22 points for the Saints. The senior guard recorded a double-double, gathering 12 rebounds, to go along with her 6 assists. Brenkach chipped in with 14 points on 6 for 8 shooting, while LeBel finished with 11 points. Junior point guard Casey Shevlin (Medford, N.Y.) dished out 6 assists in the effort for Emmanuel.
The Saints will pick up a "no-contest" victory on Saturday over Mount Ida College, as the Mustangs were forced to cancel the remaining games in their season. Emmanuel will play next on Tuesday night (2/16), when the Saints travel to New Haven, Connecticut to do battle with the Falcons of Albertus Magnus College in a 7pm start.