BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. - The St. Francis Brooklyn women's basketball team (7-6, 3-2 NEC) defeated NEC rivals Wagner (10-4, 3-1 NEC) 62-55 to go above .500 for the first time this season. It was the Terriers' third win a row, all of them coming against conference opponents.
Despite trailing by 12 points heading into the fourth quarter, the Terriers caught fire to score 25 points while limiting their opponent to just five, who brought a four game winning streak of their own coming into Saturday's contest.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A strong first half for the Terriers saw them lead by as many as nine midway through the second quarter. Scoring was shared amongst the Terriers' players, with Khaleah Edwards and Isabella Posset both on seven. Nevena Dimitrijevic scored six, and two other Terriers had five.
The Terriers got their opponents into foul trouble with aggressive drives to the rim, and the Seahawks were into the bonus with half the second quarter still to play. However, Wagner chipped into the St. Francis lead in the late stages of the quarter with help from Lina Loceniece who made two threes in quick succession, but Isabella Posset was able to restore the Terriers' advantage just before the end of the half.
The second half was a tail of two very different quarters, as Wagner opened the 3rd on a 9-0 run to take a seven point lead. SFBK's Jaila Lee broke the scoring drought on a second change opportunity off an offensive rebound, but Wagner subsequently opened up their biggest lead of the game. All in all, Wagner outscored the hosts by 14 in the quarter.
Heading into the final period down 12, the Terriers got their act together quickly. Ally Lassen ended a 6:30 minute scoring drought by getting to the foul line, followed by successful possessions which led to buckets by Khaleah Edwards, Alyssa Fisher and Zharia Hutchinson to cut the deficit to six. A Wagner timeout couldn't break the Terriers' momentum, as they continued their hot shooting and tightened up on the defensive end.
A quick 7-0 run cuts the deficit to 6 with 6:58 to play!
— St. Francis Brooklyn WBB 🏀 (@SFBK_WBB) January 15, 2022
WAG 51
SFBK 45#BrooklynTough | #NECWBB pic.twitter.com/NBdo8qnt7E
A three ball from Fisher tied the game with 4:43 to play. Then, with just under three minutes to go, the Terriers forced Wagner into a turnover, and Nevena Dimitrijevic drained a three-pointer to give St. Francis their first lead since early in the 3rd quarter. All in all, the Terriers outscored Wagner 25-6 in the quarter on 4-5 shooting from three to secure a six point comeback win at home.
Nevena from wayyy downtown and we have the lead#BrooklynTough | #NECWBB pic.twitter.com/HVleC1DDds
— St. Francis Brooklyn WBB 🏀 (@SFBK_WBB) January 15, 2022
TEAM LEADERS
Alyssa Fisher was the Terriers leading scorer with 13 points, shooting 2-4 from three and coming up with four steals.
The second leading scorer for SFBK was Khaleah Edwards with 12, who shot 5-11 from the field and secured four rebounds.
Nevena Dimitijevic added 11 points of her own. Her 3-5 shooting from behind the arc included the go ahead bucket with 2:51 to play.
NEXT UP: The Terriers are back in action on Monday, January 17th as they face cross-borough rivals LIU at 7:00 PM. The game will be broadcast on SNY and ESPN3, and simulcast on NEC Front Row.