Syracuse University
Wagner College
Alexander Leads Orange to Best Start in 12 Years
12/2/2009 9:16:41 PM | Women's Basketball
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Freshman center Kayla Alexander led all scorers with a career-high 23 points as the rv/rv Syracuse women's basketball team continued its winning ways with a convincing 93-55 victory against Wagner on Wednesday night. The Orange improved to 7-0 on the season for the first time since 1997-98, when it also began the season 7-0.
Senior guard Nicole Michael and junior guard Erica Morrow were among SU's other double-digit scorers as they contributed 14 and 12, respectively. Michael's 1,415 points makes her third on the SU all-time career list.
Freshmen guards Elashier Hall and Carmen Tyson-Thomas grounded the SU defense with a team-high nine rebounds and six points each.
The Orange dominated the Seahawks in all scoring categories, including 42-20 points in the paint, while collecting 18 fast break points to Wagner's two.
Alexander accounted for half of SU's points in the first 12:41 as the Orange held the 24-21 lead. The Orange continued on a 27-5 run in the next 10 minutes, while holding the Seahawks scoreless for nearly six minutes. Sophomore forward Troya Berry made a layup with 1:10 remaining in the half to give the Orange a sizeable 53-28 advantage going into the break.
Syracuse didn't waste any time building its lead, as Morrow opened up the scoring with a 3-pointer within the first 30 seconds of the second stanza. The shots continued to fall for the Orange, as it went on a 15-0 run to reach a 77-34 lead with 11:48 remaining. The Orange continued to roll, increasing its separation to as many as 44 points, 86-42, with 6:12 remaining before cruising to a 93-55 final.
Wagner was led by freshman forward Marie-Laurence Archambault, who finished with 16 points and six rebounds. The Seahawks could not overcome the scoring drought of its top two offensive scorers, junior guard Stephanie McBride and junior forward Ashley Olsen. The duo averaged a combined 22.7 points per outing entering Wednesday's matchup, but were held to just nine points against the Orange.
The Orange will continue its non-conference schedule when it travels to Ohio University on Sunday, December 6 for a 2 p.m. tipoff.
