Dec. 22, 2008

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team saw its 14-point second-half lead dissolve in the final minutes, and couldn't hold off a surging Seton Hall team in overtime as the Hawks fell to the Pirates, 74-67, Monday evening at The Palestra.

Saint Joseph's (5-6), which trailed 35-33 at the half, opened the second half with an offensive burst, putting together a 19-3 run that gave SJU a 52-38 lead on a put-back layup by sophomore Dominique Bryant at 12:44. The Hawks went 7-of-10 from the field during that stretch, while Seton Hall went 1-of-8 with two turnovers.

The Hawks maintained a 55-45 edge with 9:09 to go, but went cold from the field, shooting just 1-of-9 from the floor, including three missed layups as Seton Hall (9-1) cut the deficit to two, 57-55 with 3:25 left.

Saint Joseph's maintained the lead, but missed three free throws down the stretch, including the front end of a one-an-one twice, allowing the Pirates a chance to force overtime.

After giving SJU a 62-60 lead with a free throw with 00:12 remaining, SJU junior Ashley Logue missed the second free throw, giving Seton Hall a chance to tie or take the lead. With time ticking down, Ebonie Williams drove down the left baseline and nailed a jumper with 2.9 seconds remaining to knot that game up at 62.

The Hawks had one last chance, but junior Mariame Djouara could not add to her 21 points as a shot from halfcourt was off the mark, forcing an extra frame.

In overtime, SJU took the lead on a short jumper by junior Brittany Ford, but the Pirates slowly began pulling away. Using a 6-0 spurt, Seton Hall opened a 70-64 edge with just 00:35 remaining as the Hawks went 0-for-2 from both the field and the foul line and had two turnovers during their offensive possessions.

Junior Amy Gillespie brought SJU within 70-67 with 00:26 left, but Seton Hall added four more free throws to ice the game.

In the first half, neither team could separate itself from the other, with Seton Hall holding the biggest advantage, 18-14. Djouara tallied 12 of her team-best 21 points during the first half, but it was the Pirates who took a 35-33 edge into halftime on a Noteisha Womack at 00:30.

For the game, SJU shot 37.3 percent from the field (25-of-67), but was just 2-of-7 in overtime. The Hawks finished 7-of-17 from three-point range (41.2 percent), however they went 10-of-17 from the foul line (58.8 percent) and just 6-of-12 in the second half and overtime. At the other end, Seton Hall shot 29-of-66 from the floor (43.9 percent), 6-of-15 from behind the arc (40.0 percent) and 10-of-16 from the foul line (62.5 percent). The Pirates out rebounded the Hawks 49-34 and outscored SJU 38-22 in the paint.

Individually, Djouara's 21 points paced the Hawks, while Ford added 12 points four rebound and three steals. Senior Mary Kate McDade finished with a career-best 10 assists to go with seven points, five rebounds and three steals.

Nicole Emery led all scorers with 22 points, while Womack added 16 points and 21 rebounds for Seton Hall.

Saint Joseph's returns to action Sunday, December 28 when the Hawks host Maine at 4 p.m. at the Gallagher Center. The game is the second of the opening day of the 19th Annual Hawk Classic. Drexel and Holy Cross open play at 2 p.m.

***Photos from today's game are available at www.sidephotos.com.