COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus women's basketball team used a fast start to secure a 68-43 victory over Penn State Brandywine on Monday evening inside Helfferich Hall.
With the win, Ursinus snapped a three-game skid and improved to 7-5 on the season, while the Nittany Lions fell to 1-11 overall. Senior forward
Madison Smith led the Bears' offense with a game-high 14 points and six rebounds. First-year
Anna Chimento added a career-high 10 points and five rebounds, while senior
Ava Possenti chipped in nine points, six rebounds, and six steals.
Junior guard
Erin Glanz opened the scoring with a three-pointer assisted by Smith to give Ursinus a 3-0 lead at the 9:09 mark. After a pair of free throws by the Bears, both defenses held the opposition scoreless until Brandywine broke through at the free-throw line with 4:45 remaining in the quarter. Ursinus then knocked down three consecutive 3-pointers to extend its advantage to 14-1 with 3:11 remaining. During the run, first-year
Olivia Nardi connected on the first attempt before junior
Colleen Blackman drained back-to-back triples. After a Brandywine layup, Ursinus closed the quarter on a 6-0 run to take a 20-3 lead into the second.
Both teams traded baskets to open the second period before sophomore
Ruth O'Keeffe assisted Possenti on a layup to increase the Bears' lead to 27-7 with 6:44 remaining in the first half. Brandywine responded with an 11-4 run over the next four minutes to cut the deficit to 31-18 with 2:47 remaining. Each team converted three free throws to close the half, giving Ursinus a 34-21 advantage at the break.
Possenti and O'Keeffe each scored to open the third quarter for Ursinus before a 6-0 Nittany Lion run trimmed the Bears' lead to 11. O'Keeffe then assisted Blackman on her third 3-pointer of the game to extend the lead to 41-27 at the 5:55 mark. Senior
Makenna Foder and sophomore
Emily McDonald scored the final four points of the quarter for the Bears, while the Ursinus defense limited Brandywine to just one field goal over the final six minutes.
Leading 47-31 entering the fourth quarter, Smith scored six straight points to push the Bears' lead to 22 with 8:01 remaining. After consecutive baskets by Brandywine, Chimento answered with six of the next eight points to give Ursinus a 59-38 advantage with 4:22 to play. The Bears closed the contest on a 9-5 run to seal the 68-43 home victory.
Ursinus shot 36.2% (25 of 69) from the field, 25% (7 of 28) from beyond the arc, and 64.7% (11 of 17) from the free-throw line. Brandywine was held to 31.4% (16 of 51) shooting, including 20% (2 of 10) from 3-point range, and 64.3% (9 of 14) at the line. The Bears recorded 18 steals, converted 24 points off turnovers, and totaled 37 bench points. Jazmyn Kemp led Penn State Brandywine with 10 points and a game-high 18 rebounds.
The Bears return to action Wednesday, January 7th, as they resume Centennial Conference play on the road at Muhlenberg.
