RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The Concordia College New York women's basketball team scored the opening points of Wednesday evening's Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) contest at Felician University and never trailed, fending off a late rally by the host in a 70-65 triumph.
NOTES
• Concordia falls to 2-9, 1-1 in CACC action.
• Felician falls to 1-7, 0-3 in league play.
• It is the Clippers' fifth-consecutive victory against Felician at Job Gymnasium.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Sophomore guard Sara Hopkins (Mountain Top, Pa.) scored a season-high 18 points with four assists.
• Junior guard Shanice Graves (Brooklyn, N.Y.) chipped in 15 points and two assists, two steals and one block.
• Redshirt-sophomore forward Brenna Cloud (Delran, N.J.) added eight points with a team-high seven rebounds.
• Redshirt-freshman guard Jaylene Brown (Bronx, N.Y.) set her career-high with 13 points on top of five rebounds.
• Senior guard Nichole Nicholson (Staten Island, N.Y.) contributed four steals on the defensive end.
• For Felician, Briana Lee scored 21 points with 11 rebounds, four steals and two blocks while Taliyah Brisco dished out three assists and Rosie Arias pulled down 12 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• After splitting the initial four points of the contest, Concordia used a 7-0 run to pull ahead 9-2 with 4:12 remaining in the first quarter. The Clippers used an 11-0 run to create a double-digit advantage at 20-5, with each side adding four points over the final 1:39 of the frame to make it 24-7 going into the second quarter.
• Concordia used a 4-0 spurt to start the second quarter to take a 28-7 lead with 8:11 remaining in the half. Felician ended the run with a jumper before for a 6-1 stretch by the Clippers extended the separation to 34-10 with 5:13 left in the quarter. The host cut into the deficit using a 14-0 rally to make it 34-24, with Concordia countering behind an 8-3 stretch before back-back-back layups by Felician in the final minute created a 42-31 halftime score.
• Felician connected on a pair of free throws with 8:19 remaining in the third quarter to cut the separation down to single digits at 42-33 before back back-to-back baskets by the Clippers made it 46-33 with 4:55 remaining in the frame. The host used a 7-1 stretch to create a seven-point contest at 47-40, with the two sides splitting the final 10 points of the quarter to make it 52-45 heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
• Concordia scored back-to-back baskets in the opening minute of the final quarter to quickly recreate its double-digit advantage at 56-45 with 9:23 remaining in the game. Felician rallied to make it a one-possession affair at 62-60 with 3:59 left to play, but a 4-1 retort by the visiting side made it 66-61 with 1:38 remaining. Neither side connected on consecutive baskets down the stretch, with each side scoring four points over the final 98 seconds to create the final score.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• The Clippers converted on 19-60 shots, going 5-19 from three-point territory and 27-33 from the free throw line for a season-best .818 clip from the charity stripe.
• Felician finished 23-63 from the field, 8-25 from distance and 11-19 from the free throw line.
• Concordia recorded eight assists while Felician had nine.
• Felician held a 46-38 advantage in rebounds.
• Concordia committed 21 turnovers, resulting in 16 points for Felician. The host had 27 turnovers, leading to 29 points.
• Concordia recorded 11 steals with two blocks while the Golden Falcons had six steals with four blocks.
• Both sides got 18 points from their benches.
UP NEXT
The women's basketball team returns to the friendly confines of the Meyer Athletic Center on Saturday, Dec. 21 to host Post University in a 1 p.m. contest.
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