Dec. 4, 2009

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team dropped a heart-breaking 72-66 overtime contest to Hartford Friday evening at Michael J. Hagan '85 Arena. The Hawks got 16 points and five assists from senior Mariame Djouara, but it wasn't enough as Hartford outscored SJU 13-7 in the extra frame.

Trailing by seven with 3:58 to go in regulation, Saint Joseph's mounted a furious comeback, outscoring Hartford 10-4 over the next 3:13 to make it a 58-57 game on a jumper by Djouara with 45 seconds remaining.

Hartford's Mary Silva made one of two free throws to give her team a 59-57 edge with 28 ticks left, but Djouara answered again for the Hawks. Following a SJU timeout, Djouara got the ball and drove down the right lane for a game-tying layup with five seconds left.

The Hawks' pressure on the inbounds halted any shot attempt by Hartford, forcing the extra frame.

In over time, Hartford controlled the pace, opening a 69-64 lead with under two minutes to go.

Saint Joseph's (2-5) got a layup by sophomore forward Kelly Cavallo, and after a defensive stop, senior guard Amy Gillespie was fouled while taking a three pointer, sending her to the line with a chance to tie the game with 46 seconds left.

Unfortunately for SJU, Gillespie missed all three free throws, while Hartford went 3-of-3 from the line to close out the contest.

It was a back-and-forth opening to the game, with Saint Joseph's holding an 18-15 edge with 9:28 to go. From there though, SJU's defense spurred a 9-0 run over the next 2:33, as a layup by Djouara gave Saint Joseph's a 27-15 edge.

Hartford (6-1), which went 0-of-4 from the floor and turned the ball over once during that stretch, fought back in the final minutes of the stanza, using a 7-0 run to make it a 29-24 game with under a minute to go.

With the final seconds ticked down, found junior forward Dominique Bryant for a layup with six seconds remaining to give Saint Joseph's a 31-24 lead heading into halftime.

Saint Joseph's maintained a steady lead for the opening of the second period, but Hartford gained momentum and soon grabbed the lead. Down 45-35, Hartford used a 12-0 run from 10:51 to 6:54, taking their first lead since the early goings of the game on a three pointer by Daphne Elliott.

The Hawks opened up its biggest lead, 54-47 before Saint Joseph's fought back to force overtime.

For the game, Saint Joseph's went 27-of-60 from the floor (45 percent), 8-of-14 from the foul line (57.1 percent and 4-of-11 from three-point range (57.1 percent). At the other end, Hartford shot 23-of-50 from the field, 6-of-18 from behind the arc and 20-of-25 from the foul line.

Individually, Bryant, freshman guard Ashley Prim and senior forward Brittany Ford joined Djouara in double figures, with Bryant and Prim adding 12 points apiece and Ford finishing with 10 points. Cavallo finished with six points and a team-high two blocks, while Gillespie and sophomore guard Michelle Baker finished with five points apiece.

At the other end, Elliott finished with a game-high 21 points to pace Hartford.

Saint Joseph's returns to action Sunday as the Hawks host George Mason at 2 p.m.

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