Syracuse Defense Shuts Down St. Bonaventure, 74-37
12/7/2001 4:56:44 PM | Women's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – A stingy Syracuse defense forced 24 turnovers and held St. Bonaventure to 31 percent shooting (13-of-42) in a 74-37 victory at Manley Field House Friday night. The Orangewomen improve to 5-3 on the season with the win. The Bonnies are now 4-3.
After falling behind 12-9, SU went on a 25-7 run the last 14:14 of the first half to take a 34-19 lead heading into intermission. Sophomore guard Julie McBride (Mechanicville, N.Y./ Catholic Central) scored 13 in the opening stanza, shooting 5-of-9 from the field and hitting all three of her three-point attempts. McBride finished with a game-high 21 points and tied a career high with four three-pointers.
The Orangewomen stole the ball 10 times in the opening half, including four steals by senior guard Jaime James (Plymouth, Mass./ Plymouth North) and three by freshman guard Rochelle Coleman (Burtonsville, Md./Paint Branch).
SU continued its run in the second half, outscoring the Bonnies 40-18 and finishing the game with an 18-3 spurt during the last 6:23. St. Bonaventure shot 21.7 percent from the field in the second half (5-of-23).
The 37 points was the least scored by an SU opponent since a 96-34 victory against Long Island in the 1998-99 season. It was also the largest margin of victory for Syracuse since that same game.
Four Orangewomen scored in double figures. In addition to McBride, senior forward Jazmine Wright (South Orange, N.J./Columbia) added 13 points and James scored 12. Senior forward Leaf Newman (Perris, Calif./Perris) contributed 10 points. Wright led the Orangewomen with seven rebounds.
Coleman scored a career-high nine points in 16 minutes, and freshman forward Sarah Wegrzynowicz (San Antonio, Texas/Taft) scored her first two collegiate points. Junior forward Maja Omanovic (Mostar, Bosnia/New Mexico J.C.) netted five points, her first in an SU uniform. All eight SU players that saw action scored. Courtney Mattingley led the Bonnies with 14 points, including four three-pointers.
Syracuse has nearly two weeks during the university's final exam period. The Orangewomen resume play versus Harvard at Manley Field House on Thursday, Dec. 20. The game will start at 2 p.m.
