HOBOKEN, N.J. (November 20, 2009) – Senior co-captain Brittany Fuller netted a game-high 25 points to lead the Stevens Institute of Technology women’s basketball team past New Jersey City University, 71-47, in the opening game of the 2009 Stevens Tip-Off Tournament at Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. The Ducks, coming off of a season-opening upset win over D3Hoops.com No. 21 The College of New Jersey, are now 2-0 on the young season, while the Gothic Knights fall to 0-2.
Down 6-4 in the early going following a Miesha Cooke (Paterson, N.J.) triple, junior center Victoria O'Connor netted three-straight Ducks’ points to kick-start a 10-5 Stevens run capped off by a Fuller three that gave Stevens a 14-11 advantage just shy of the 13-minute mark.
Still up three at 16-13, sophomore forward Jillian Barrett converted a three-point play the old fashioned way before an O’Connor layup coupled with another Fuller three and layup gave Stevens a 26-13 edge. NJCU responded with five-straight points of their own to cut the deficit to five with 3:16 remaining in the first half before the Ducks, thanks in part of a pair of triples from Fuller and senior co-captain Sarah Gehring, tallied nine unanswered points to close out the frame, taking a 17-point lead into the intermission.
“I thought we were letting them control the tempo. We were playing their style, but we did a good job of ending the first half,” said Stevens women’s basketball head coach Jon Hochberg. “We got two or three baskets in a row [to close out the half] to make it a 17-point lead.”
Hoping to ride the momentum into the second half, the Ducks outscored the Gothic Knights, 4-2, over the first three-minutes of the stanza, but NJCU battled back, netting five-straight points on a pair of Ebony Cunningham (East Orange, N.J.) field-goals to pare the Stevens lead to 14. Hoping to stem the Gothic Knight tide, the Ducks turned to a pair of returnees to help fuel another Stevens run.
“It’s early, and early on when you have some young, inexperienced kids on the floor, you do need some veterans,” Hochberg said. “You need some senior leadership out there to calm things down and get things back under control.”
The Ducks responded with a 20-5 run over the next eight minutes of action to take a decisive 59-30 advantage. Fuller tallied 8 points during the Ducks’ crucial run, with Barrett and junior Cynthia Hassler adding six-points apiece. NJCU would make one final run, trimming the Stevens lead to 21, by outscoring Stevens 10-2 over the next three minutes, but the Ducks responded to the Gothic Knight rally yet again, reeling off seven unanswered points over the next two and a half minutes to extend the margin to 28 with just 2:15 left to play.
Fuller pulled down nine rebounds in addition to her season-high 25 points, turning in one of her best all-around performances as a member of the Ducks.
“Brittany [Fuller] had one heck of a game tonight. She had 15 points in the first half and everything was going in. She also did a great job on the defensive boards,” said Hochberg. “All-around I think it was one of the better games that she’s ever played here. She’s an outstanding player.”
O’Connor added 11 points and a team-high 11 rebounds in the win, while Barrett put forth a 9-point, 4-rebound, 3-steal effort. Sophomore forward Taryn Barnes finished with eight points, while fellow sophomore Dawn Garcia had five assists
Cooke netted a team-high 12 points to pace NJCU offensively, while Cunningham and freshman point guard Latifah Johnson (Newark, N.J.) each added 10 points. Cunningham, freshman guard Pria Duhaney (Union, N.J.) and freshman center Kiara Denson (Garfield, N.J.) each grabbed five rebounds.
Stevens shot 51.0 percent from the floor on 25-for-49 shooting, while holding NJCU to 27.4 percent from the field (17-for-62). The Ducks shot 58.3 percent from beyond the arc, while the Gothic Knights went 4-for-22 (18.2) from three-point range. Stevens also held a decisive 48 to 30 rebounding edge, while forcing 21 NJCU turnovers.
Babson College downed Wesleyan University, 66-37, in the second game of the Stevens Tip-Off tournament doubleheader. Sophomore forward Kathleen King (Framingham, Mass.) led the Beavers with a game-high 19 points and 13 rebounds, while junior guard Becky Bowman (Melrose, Mass.) finished with 15 points on 7-for-12 shooting. The Melrose, Mass. native also dished out six assists in the win.
Sophomore Eileen Gaffney (Manhasset, N.Y.) led Wesleyan with 11 points and five rebounds, while junior guard Erin Gold (New Hope, Pa.) had seven points and four rebounds in the loss. Sophomore Sam LaCroce (Prospect, Conn.) finished with six points, four boards, and a pair of steals.
Stevens will face Babson in tomorrow's 2009 Stevens Tip-Off Tournament championship game set to tip-off at 8 p.m., while NJCU faces Wesleyan in the consolation game slated for 6 p.m.
