Jan. 30, 2008

Final Stats

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - Sophomore Dana Mitchell's two free throws with 0.2 seconds on the clock erased a late 15-point second half deficit as the St. Bonaventure women's basketball team stormed from behind to post a 62-61 victory Wednesday evening on Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center.

The Brown and White's third win in a row improved the club's record to 15-6 (3-3) and moved the Bonnies just one win shy of matching the program's single-season all-time win mark in the Division I era with 16. Only five teams in school history have notched 15 overall triumphs, including last year's 16-15 ball club. With defeats in four of the last six contests, Duquesne drops to 11-10 (2-4) on the season.

Mitchell led all scorers with 19 points, including 14 in the second stanza, for her 21st contest in double digits. The A-10's leading scorer also hauled down eight rebounds to go along with three assists and two steals. Junior Katelyn Murray was the only other Bonnie in double figures with 12 points.

However, the Bonnies received solid production from throughout the roster as eight players entered the scoring column. Junior Ashley Edwards contributed with eight points and a season-high 10 rebounds off the bench, while sophomore Andrea Doneth recorded seven points and a huge three-pointer down the stretch to go along with her four helpers.

The Bonnies owned a 39-33 advantage on the boards and turned 15 offensive rebounds into 15 second chance points.

With both sides trading baskets in the beginning phase of the second stanza, the Bonnies used an 8-2 run to pull within eight points on two occasions at 45-37 and 47-39 with 12-plus minutes remaining.

However, Duquesne was able to answer each time it dipped below 10 points with easy lay ups on the blocks from freshman Samantha Pollino and senior Jade Singleton. The visiting Dukes responded following the brief Bona stretch with nine of the next 11 points to extend the lead back to 15 points at 56-41 with 8:49 showing on the clock. Malo accounted for the only Brown and White points during the run on a 2-of-4 performance from the line.

Refusing to fold after falling behind big more than midway through the second session, the Brown and White rallied on a 21-5 burst to overtake the lead with Mitchell's free throws in the final seconds of the game.

Duquesne managed just one field goal and three free throws in the final 10:14 of the contest. The final score was the Bonnies' first lead since a 9-8 advantage at the 16:27 mark early in the first half.

Trailing by 15 with 8:49 remaining in regulation, Edwards started the surge with two makes at the line prior to a nifty driving lay in from freshman Cara Gustafson, who failed to connect on the three-point play opportunity at the line after drawing contact on the way up.

Sophomore Sam Thompson tallied the final Duquesne field goal with 7:16 remaining before the Bonnies forced the Dukes into a 0-for-7 performance from the floor down the stretch.

Following two more three throws from Doneth, Mitchell poured in six straight points in the paint to pull the Bonnies within five points. Doneth responded with her only triple of the game from the top of the arc after missing on an attempt the previous trip down the floor. Her trifecta closed the gap to just two points at 58-56 with 4:18 left.

Singleton added a pair of freebies at the stripe following the final media timeout to extend the lead to four points. Murray quickly responded with a baseline jumper that saw the ball rattle around the rim before falling in to bring it back to a one possession game.

Duquesne would extend the lead back to three points thanks to sophomore Keri Pryor's free throw at 61-58 with 1:55 showing on the clock. Over a minute later, Gustafson connected on a slashing floater in the lane while drawing contact, but failed to knot the score up at the line.

With the Bonnies trailing 61-60 with under a minute to play, the defense forced a Duquesne miss from three-point range with 8 seconds left before Mitchell slashed down the baseline on the other end while drawing contact at the rim. The Fairless Hills, Pa. product calmly knocked down both at the line to seal the win.

Following the opening 20 minutes of play, the Brown and White entered the locker room trailing for just the fifth time this season with a 37-26 deficit. It was the Bonnies' third largest trailing margin of the season. The Dukes owned the lead for the final 15:31 of the first half after falling behind in the early stages of the contest.

Despite cashing in on their first four trips down the floor, including a quick 7-2 spurt to take an early 9-6 lead, the Bonnies surrendered 10 straight and 25 of the next 32 tallies as the Dukes built a 15-point advantage at the 5:03 mark.

The Bona offense found its rhythm in the opening minutes of play with four positive possessions to start the game. Mitchell opened the Brown and White scoring with an easy lay in off a feed from one of junior Tiara Johnson's five dimes before the first-year point guard canned a mid-range jumper to knot the score at 4-4.

Junior Erica Schiefen followed with a three-pointer from the left corner before Murray connected on a pair of free throws at the stripe to build a three-point edge just three minutes in.

Following the slow start, Duquesne exploded on a 25-7 run and constructed a first half lead as big as 15 points in the process.

The Dukes built the advantage with consecutive buckets in the paint from Pryor and Singleton before Little drained triples on back-to-back trips down the court to extend the lead to seven points at 16-9.

Following three of the next five points from Mitchell, Pollino tallied a pair of simple baskets in the paint to extend the lead into double digits for the first time at 22-12. Reinshuttle added the club's third trifecta of the run to push the lead to 13, while Pollino capped the offensive outburst with another deuce to stretch the advantage to 15 points at 31-16.

After suffering a pair of three-plus minute droughts from the field during the Dukes' first half explosion, the Bonnies closed the half with 10 of the final 16 points to slice four points off the Duquesne lead.

The closing spurt was aided by two threes in the final two minutes thanks to connections from Schiefen and Murray. The club's final trifecta of the first stanza cut the Duquesne advantage to 37-26 just before the halftime horn.

The Brown and White return to action on Sunday, Feb. 3 as they travel to Dayton to take on the 17-5 Flyers at 4:00 p.m.