Syracuse University
St. John's University
Michael Tallies Double-Double in 68-65 Loss to Red Storm
1/27/2010 9:44:15 PM | Women's Basketball
Box Score | Coach Hillsman Quotes | Player Postgame Quotes
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Syracuse University women's basketball team (16-4, 3-4) battled the Red Storm, but could not overcome St. John's (17-3, 5-2), losing 68-65 at the Carrier Dome on Wednesday evening. In a game featuring seven ties and 18 lead changes, the Orange found itself down one, 66-65, with seven seconds remaining. With the possession arrow pointing toward Syracuse, the St. John's defense turned up the pressure and forced a turnover in the closing seconds to seal the victory.
Sophomore guard Tyler Ash hit her second 3-pointer of the night to put the Orange up, 63-58, with 2:22 remaining, but the Red Storm quickly caught up to SU before taking a slim, 63-62, lead with 1:26 left in the game. Senior forward Nicole Michael made a layup to regain the lead, but SJU tied it up at 65-65 before taking the one-point lead. Head coach Quentin Hillsman called the time out with seven seconds remaining, giving senior forward Juanita Ward a chance to take the lead, but St. John's forced the turnover while junior guard Tasha Harris committed a foul moments later as the Red Storm held on for the win.
Michael registered her fourth double-double of the season and was the only player to score in double-figures for the Orange with a team-best 22 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. Freshman guard Elashier Hall scored a career-high eight points, which was matched by Ash and senior forward Vionca Murray.
The Orange shot 44.5 percent (27-61) from the field, while limiting St. John's to 38.5 percent (25-65). SU also held the advantage in 3-point shooting with 41.2 percent (7-17) compared to SJU's 33.3 percent (4-12). The Red Storm kept itself in the game with its 87.6 percent (14-16) free-throw shooting, while holding SU to just 50 percent (4-8).
The first half was a low-scoring, back-and-forth contest featuring four ties and nine lead changes. Murray accounted for both of the Orange baskets as St. John's doubled SU's scoring total, 8-4, more than four minutes into the game. A 3-pointer by Michael brought the Orange within one, while a Ward layup gave Syracuse its first lead, 9-8, with 13:31 left. Ward turned a layup into an old-fashioned 3-point play to take a 12-10 lead with 10:01 remaining, but the Red Storm tied things up moments later.
The Orange took its largest lead of the half with back-to-back layups, 16-14, but St. John's knotted it up once again with 6:28 left before the break. SU pulled ahead by two, but St. John's fought back before Ash accounted for the game's fourth tie, 20-20, with 2:29 remaining. Ward scored the final basket as the Orange closed out the half with a 24-23 advantage.
Syracuse began to increase its lead courtesy of a 7-2 run to start the second half, 31-25, but the Red Storm responded with its own run to take the 32-31 lead with 15:40 remaining. The Orange regained the one-point lead, 37-36, with a 3-pointer by Harris, but St. John's answered with a 3-ball and a layup to hold the 41-37 with 12:08 left in the game. SJU continued on a 6-0 run within a 28 second span to give it its largest lead, 47-39, but a crucial 3-pointer by sophomore guard Lynnae Lampkins sparked a 14-2 Orange run to take the lead one again, 55-52, with 6:02 remaining.
Syracuse continues its BIG EAST slate when it hosts No. 3 Notre Dame on Saturday, January 30 at 1 p.m. at the Carrier Dome. Tickets are available online (SUAthletics.com), by phone (1-888-DOMETIX) or in person at the Carrier Dome Box office.
