Syracuse University
ARV/#25 Cincinnati
Wright's Jumper Leads Orangewomen to 70-68 Win at Cincinnati
1/8/2002 8:22:38 PM | Women's Basketball
CINCINATTI, Ohio – A 15-foot jump shot by Jazmine Wright (South Orange, N.J./Columbia) with one-tenth of a second left on the clock propelled the Syracuse women's basketball team to a 70-68 victory at Cincinnati on Tuesday, Jan. 8. The Orangewomen are now 8-5, while the Bearcats now stand at 11-2.
Cincinnati entered the game ranked 25th in the ESPN/USA Today Top 25. The Bearcats were also receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25. It is SU's first win versus a ranked opponent since defeating Old Dominion to open the 2000-01 season.
Wright's jumper capped a 10-point comeback in the final 6:11 of the game. The Orangewomen finished the contest on a 21-9 run. With the lead whittled down to 61-59, senior forward Leaf Newman (Perris, Calif./Perris) tied the game with two free throws. Cincinnati took a three-point lead on a triple by Laura Wilder, but SU answered with a three by senior guard Jaime James (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North). The Bearcats retook the lead on a jumper by Debbie Merrill. James then tied the game at 66-66, hitting two free throws after being fouled shooting a three-pointer. Sophomore Shannon Perry (Providence, R.I./LaSalle) put Syracuse ahead 68-66 on a layup, but the Bearcats' K.B. Sharp hit two free throws to tie the score at 68-68 with 7.3 seconds remaining. Sophomore point guard Julie McBride (Mechanicville, N.Y./Catholic Central) brought the ball up the floor, penetrated and kicked to a wide-open Wright who sealed the game for the Orangewomen.
McBride led Syracuse with 19 points on 8-of-17 from the floor, including three first-half three-point baskets, and four assists. She spotted the Orangewomen to an 8-5 lead, scoring their first eight points of the contest. Syracuse pushed their first-half lead to as many as 10, 25-15, with 7:11 left in the first stanza. The Bearcats were able to claw their way back, however, and trailed 31-27 at intermission. They continued their momentum in the second half, opening with a 32-14 run to take their 10-point lead before Syracuse's comeback.
James and Perry each added 15 for the Orangewomen. Perry took rebounding honors for SU with nine. Wright finished the game with seven points. James also led all players with four steals.
Syracuse shot 44.8 percent for the game, including 55.6 percent in the second half. The Orangewomen outrebounded the Bearcats, 39-34, despite playing without starting center Chineze Nwagbo (Lanham-Seabrook, Md./Duval), who missed the game with a foot injury. The SU defense limited the Bearcats to 41.8 percent shooting for the game.
Valerie King led Cincinnati with 22 points, including 17 in the second half. King ended the game 5-of-8 from behind the arc. Debbie Merrill hit for 20 points on 9-of-27 shooting. She led all players with 13 rebounds.
The game was SU's final non-conference tilt of the season. The Orangewomen return home on Saturday, Jan. 12 when they host BIG EAST rival Providence at 2 p.m. in Manley Field House.
AGATE
Syracuse (70)
Julie McBride (8-17, 0-0, 19), Jaime James (5-19, 3-4, 15), Shannon Perry (5-8, 5-5, 15), Jazmine Wright (3-4, 0-0, 7), Leaf Newman (2-6, 2-2, 6), Tara Trammell (2-2, 2-4, 6), Maja Omanovic (1-2, 0-0, 2), Rochelle Coleman (0-0, 0-0, 0)
Cincinnati (68)
Valerie King (8-16, 1-1, 22), Debbie Merrill (9-27, 2-3, 20), K.B. Sharp (3-8, 3-3, 9), Laura Wilder (4-7, 0-0, 9), Tamara Douglass (2-2, 0-0, 4), Carolyn Alexander (1-2, 0-0, 2), Portia Flournoy (1-1, 0-0, 2), Brittani Young (0-1, 0-0, 0), Merelenea Dozier (0-3, 0-0, 0)
Rebounding: SU 39 (Perry 9), UC 34 (Merrill 13)
Assists: SU 12 (McBride 4), UC 13 (Wilder 5)
Blocks: SU 0, UC 1 (Merrill)
Steals: SU 5 (James 4), UC 4 (Douglass, King, Wilder, Flournoy)
Turnovers: SU 16, UC 11
Field Goals: SU .448 (26-58), UC .418 (28-67)
Halftime: SU 31, UC 27
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