The AU women’s basketball team could not escape Jadwin Gym, home of the Princeton University Tigers, without wounds in their 77-45 loss to the home team on Monday night.
| Women's Basketball | |
| AU | 45 |
| Princeton | 77 |
| Princeton, N.J. |
Things looked good in the opening minutes of game as AU senior Nicole Ryan knocked down back-to-back threes. However, the Eagles fell quickly into Princeton’s rhythm and were unable to regain the lead for the rest of the game.
AU turned the ball over throughout the first half, allowing the Tigers to answer Ryan’s threes with an 18-0 run. Guards Niveen Rasheed and Addie Micir led the scoring. Both players finished the night with double-digit points, as did teammates Krytsal Hill and Devona Allgood.
With 10 minutes left to play in the first half, AU was finally able to trade baskets with Princeton. AU junior Liz Leer led the rally, sinking a jumper and a layup off a pass from teammate Michelle Kirk. AU’s surge cut the Tigers’ lead to 17 points by the end of the half. Princeton led the Eagle’s 34-17 at halftime. Princeton outshot the Eagles in the first half, shooting 42.9 percent from the floor, compared to AU’s 27.3 percent.
AU came out aggressively in the second half with junior forward Michelle Kirk sinking an early bucket from behind the arc. Kirk continued to drive at the boards, slowing chipping away the Tiger lead.
Much like the first half, Princeton challenged AU’s spurt of energy with 16 unanswered points. The shooting streak increased the Eagles’ deficit, bringing the score to 55-24 with 14 minutes left in the half.
Ryan ended AU’s dry spell in the 12th minute, with a three-pointer and a jumper. Ryan led AU with her strong offense, scoring 16 points for the night, including four-of-six behind the arc.
The ball changed hands often as the final 10 minutes ticked off the clock, featuring an unsuccessful attempt by AU to cut Princeton’s lead to less than 30 points.
Eagles guard Nicole Ryan sunk her final three-pointer with 25 seconds left on the clock. Her solid effort throughout the night was ineffective in generating substantial scoring opportunities for her team.
Princeton outplayed AU in all aspects of the game. Princeton shot 50.8 percent from the floor compared to the Eagles’ 40 percent overall. Key to the Tigers’ win was the team’s strong defense, which generated 25 Eagle turnovers and eight steals. At the free-throw line, Princeton went 5-6 on the night, while the AU was only 2-6. Although the two teams were neck and neck rebounding, Princeton was able to connect and use their offensive rebounds better than AU.
AU women’s basketball is now 1-1 on the season and has yet to begin conference play.
The final stop on the Eagles’ season-opening road trip is Brown University, where the team will look to capture their second win of the season on Wednesday.
You can reach this writer at sports@theeagleonline.com.
