WASHINGTON D.C. – Senior Telisha Turner (Wilmington, Del.) scored 25 points to lead the University of District of Columbia women's basketball team to a 72-60 victory over upset-minded Daemen College here today in East Coast Conference action.
UDC, which is receiving votes in the latest WBCA Division II national poll and is the preseason favorite to win the ECC crown, improved to 10-2 overall and 3-1 in the league following its fourth-straight win. Daemen saw its two-game winning streak come to an end and dropped to 3-5 overall and 1-2 in the ECC.
Three players scored in double figures for Daemen. Freshman Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster) recorded her second career double-double and finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Junior Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) went 4-for-5 from three-point land and totaled 12 points and three assists. The effort moves her into third place in career three-point field goals made at Daemen with 164. Sophomore Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) added 11 points, three assists and two steals.
Turner, a first-team All-ECC pick last year, connected on 10-of-17 shots and also handed out four assists. Senior Denikka Brent (Chesapeake, Va.), another first-team All-ECC pick last year, added 12 points and 10 rebounds for UDC.
A tightly played first half featured six ties and five lead changes. The game was tied at 13-13 with just under eight minutes to play in the first half when the Wildcats put together a 9-2 run. A three-pointer by Stilwell with 6:12 left in the half capped the run and gave Daemen a 22-15 lead. Daemen held a 24-17 lead when the Firebirds regained the lead after eight-straight points by Turner. UDC took a 32-28 lead into the break.
Daemen's shot at pulling off the upset took a hit early in the second half, as both of DC's starting forwards were forced to the bench with foul trouble. Sophomore Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier), who entered the game averaging 9.6 points and a team-high 9.7 rebounds, picked up her fourth personal foul with 16:55 left in the second half. Senior Shy Britton (Rochester, N.Y./Niagara University), who entered the game averaging 14.1 points and 8.9 rebounds, picked up her fourth foul less than a minute later with 15:35 remaining in the second. Galus ended up playing 21 minutes today and totaled two points and five rebounds. Britton totaled nine points and seven rebounds in 20 minutes of action.
Despite the loss of Galus and Britton, the Wildcats stayed within striking range and trailed by just five points, 46-41, after Stilwell drained a three-pointer with 8:02 left to play. UDC's lead was six, 48-42, with just over five minutes to play when the hosts took control with an 11-5 run. Turner scored seven points during the run and two free throws by junior Taj Baldwin-Kollore (Newport News, Va.) with 3:02 remaining capped the run and gave UDC a 59-47 lead. The Firebirds maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
Daemen connected on just 6-of-23 shots in the first half, but made 54-percent (12-of-22) of its shots in the second half. UDC shot 46-percent (13-for-28) in the second half and finished 26-of-63 (41%) from the field overall. Daemen posted a 41-34 advantage in total rebounds, but the Wildcats turned the ball over 25 times (as compared to 15 for UDC) and the Firebirds posted a 24-9 edge in points off turnovers.
Daemen returns to action Monday (Jan. 5) when it plays a non-league game at Washington Adventist University. Both teams are members of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association.
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