BLOOMFIELD, NJ – After snapping a nine-game losing streak on Saturday, the women's basketball team took another step in the right direction, knocking off a formidable, regional and non-conference opponent in The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) Monday evening. The Bears defeated the Firebirds in overtime, 73-68 at The Den and improved to 3-10 overall while the visitors fell to 11-4 after the setback.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
· Junior guard,
Kamrin Babbs tied her career-high with 28 points (10-18 FG, 5-9 3PT & 3-4 FT) along with 9 rebounds, 3 steals and an assist
·
Taneshia Tucker posted a double-double, dishing out 11 assists while dropping 18 points (4-12 FG, 3-7 3PT, 7-12 FT), 5 rebounds and 2 blocks
·
Daniya Darby nearly had her fourth double-double of the year as she snagged 9 boards to go along with 11 points (5-11 FG, 1-3 FT)
KEY MOMENTS
· Both offenses struggled out of the gate, going a combined 8-for-29 from the field with UDC taking a slight 11-9 lead after the first quarter. Bloomfield did not attempt a freethrow in the opening quarter of play.
· The Bears found their way in the 2
nd quarter though as they shot 50.0 percent from the floor (8-for-16) fueled by 3-for-4 from Babbs and the home team went into halftime up, 29-24.
· Bloomfield controlled the tempo out of intermission and saw their lead grow to nine (45-36) on a three-pointer for Babbs with 2:01 on the clock. By the end of the third quarter, the Firebirds were down 47-42 but still fighting to find their way on offense.
· Just over five minutes into the fourth, UDC tied the game at 55 on a basket in the paint. Darby answered with a layup of her own on the other end to put the home team back on top. A Bears foul with only 2.6 seconds on the clock and a slim, 61-59 lead gave the visitors an opportunity to extend the game into overtime.
· After UDC sank the freethrows the home team prepared for their second OT contest of the year. On Dec 8
th the Bears prevailed over another non-conference foe in Lincoln University and they drew from that experience to battle off the Firebirds. Babbs buried a three-pointer on a feed from Tucker to put Bloomfield on top for good with 1:01 left in the extra period.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
·
Erika Mercedes came off the bench to contribute 6 points (3-6 FG) in her 22 minutes of action which included a key shot in overtime
· The Bears converted 4-of-6 three-pointers in the third quarter and enjoyed 16 second chance points for the game
· Each team recorded 23 turnovers and Bloomfield held a slight edge in points off turnovers (20-19). UDC dominated on the boards with a 61-49 advantage and also held a 32-24 edge on points in the paint
WHAT'S NEXT
· The Bears then hit the road for a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference battle with Jefferson on Thursday, Jan 11 (5:30 p.m.).
· Bloomfield doesn't return to The Den until Jan 17 when they host Jefferson at 1:00 p.m.
If you missed the excitement of today's match-up or you'd like to see it again, you can click this link to watch it ON DEMAND.
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