Box Score Dec. 3, 2011
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BRONX, N.Y. -
Saturday's 44-42 win was one of those games that every basketball team trying to build a foundation for success has to go through, a grind-it-out- type of contest where teams miss open looks and key players have an off day. But the Fordham University women's team was able to utilize an aggressive defense and clutch free throw shooting from Becky Peters to escape with a two-point victory over San Diego, 44-42.
With the win, the Rams improve to 5-2 while San Diego falls to 5-2. The 5-2 start for Fordham is the best start for a women's squad since the 2002-03 teams also opened the season 5-2.
The game was close throughout and was tied at 42 in the final minute. With 15 seconds left, San Diego's Danielle Connors missed a jumper and Arielle Collins grabbed the rebound for the Rams.
After a time out, Fordham got the ball to Peters who drove to the baseline and got off a jumper that missed, but Felecia Wijenberg was whistled for a foul, sending Peters to the free throw line with just over three seconds remaining. She calmly made both free throws to give Fordham the 44-42 lead.
The Rams, who had a foul to give, used a little strategy and fouled San Diego at midcourt following the inbound play. As a result, the Toreros had 1.2 seconds to inbound the ball from midcourt and get off a shot. Conners took the feed and got off desperation three that bounced off the back of the rim and out as the Rams held on for the 44-42 win.
In an all-too-familiar scenario this season for the Rams, the team fell behind early, 4-0, as the Toreros' torrid play over the first minutes of the game led to baskets by Dominique Conners and Kameron Knutson. Fordham quickly countered with a three-pointer by Collins and a jumper from Peters and the Rams owned a 5-4 advantage at 17:53.
From there, San Diego went on a 10-4 run to take a five-point lead, 14-9, at 11:25, which was capped by two of Felicia Wijenberg's 12-points. The five point edge by the visitors was their largest lead of the game.
Fordham turned up the defensive pressure to get back in the game, holding the Toreros to 6-19 shooting after San Diego opened the game hitting four of its first five shots. The Rams turned that aggressive play into points as three-pointers from Abigail Corning and Collins quickly gave the Rams a one-point edge, 15-14, at 8:42.
At the 5:35 mark, Fordham was involved in a play that aptly summed up the game for the Rams. Charlotte Stoddart started the possession by missing a jumper, but Peters corralled the rebound. Collins followed with a missed three-pointer with Corning crashing the boards to keep possession of the ball. Collins then missed another trifecta, with and Peters hauling in the rebound, and Stoddart missed a three, getting her own shot back before finding Collins who missed a layup. San Diego took in the rebound, but Collins quickly stole the ball from Wijenberg and later buried a three-pointer to give the Rams an 18-14 lead. In that sequence, Fordham had four offensive rebounds, a steal and a three-pointer.
The Toreros used a 7-0 run to close out the final five minutes of the half and take a 22-18 advantage at halftime. Dominique Conners made the final bucket as time expired, two of her game-high 18 points.
The second half began with the Toreros equaling their largest first-half lead of five points as a Conners layup at 14:54 gave them a 28-23 advantage. Fordham quickly tied the game as Peters nailed a three and Taryn Durant put back a miss at 13:15 that leveled the score at 28-28.
The final five minutes of the games saw both teams trade the lead as a Peters' three gave Fordham a 36-34 lead at 4:34. Conners tied the game with a pair of free throws, and Katie Kuklok put them ahead, 39-37, with a three-pointer at 3:29.
The San Diego lead was short lived though, as Collins buried her fourth three-pointer of the game at 3:02, to give the Rams a 40-39 lead. The Fordham edge got to three, 42-39, on a pair of foul shots from Peters, but the Toreros evened the score at 42 when Morgan Woodrow buried a three-pointer with 1:08 remaining.
Peters scored 16 points to lead the Rams while Collins finished with 14 points and shot 50% from the field (5-10). As a team, Fordham made 8-19 (42.1%) from behind the three-point line.
The Fordham women's basketball team will be on the road in its next three contests, beginning with a matchup at Bucknell on Tuesday, December 6 at 7:00 P.M.
Game Notes:
The 44 points scored by the Rams in the win was the fewest points scored in a victory for a Fordham team since a 41-39 win over Dayton on January 7, 2001...Abigail Corning grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in the game...Her previous high (9) came against Albany last year...The Rams outrebounded San Diego, 40-31, the fifth time this year the team accomplished the feat...Becky Peters started her 85th game, tying Mobolaji Akiode for 8th place on the school's career games started list...The Fordham win evens its all-time series with San Diego, 2-2.
