ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – Asianae Johnson and Maddie Dziezgowski both matched career-highs, propelling the St. Bonaventure University women's basketball team to a 74-66 victory over Richmond Saturday afternoon at the Reilly Center.
Johnson scored 22 of her game-high 28 points in the second half, hitting 9-of-10 shots to close out the game. She finished 10-for-16 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line while also pulling down four rebounds. Dziezgowski shot 5-of-8 from the field, 4-for-7 from three and was 6-for-7 from the charity stripe for her 20 tallies. Also in double figures for the Bonnies was Tori Harris who chipped in 13 points.
The Bonnies (12-9, 4-6 A-10) and the Spiders found themselves tied, 50-50, heading into the final frame.
Richmond (13-10, 4-6 A-10) opened the fourth quarter scoring on a layup from Grace Townsend.
Bona's quickly took the lead a few possessions later when Dziezgowski was left open in the corner for a 3-pointer, giving the Bonnies a 53-52 edge.
The hosts would never trail again.
St. Bonaventure's lead grew to eight, 62-54, when Harris connected on a three from the wing with 4:37 remaining on the clock.
Emma Squires pulled the Spiders back within two, 66-64, with 1:32 left in the game but Nikki Oppenheimer's 3-pointer on the next Bonnies possession put the Spiders away for good.
Oppenheimer came up clutch on the defensive end late in the game for the Bonnies, coming up with a pair of steals in the final minute to help secure the victory.
Richmond jumped out of the gates early, taking a 22-9 first quarter lead thanks to a 10-0 run.
The Bonnies are back in action Wednesday, Feb. 9 when they host UMass at the Reilly Center. Tip is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
GAME NOTES
- Saturday served as the Bonnies annual Pink Game, raising money for breast cancer awareness. All proceeds from this year's game will benefit the Olean General Hospital Foundation, The Pink Pumpkin Project and the Zonta Club of Olean.
- St. Bonaventure trailed by as many as 13 in Saturday's contest which also included seven ties and eight lead changes.
- Dziezgowski reached 20 points for the second time this season, previously scoring 20 points in an overtime loss at Saint Louis.
- Asianae Johnson became the first Bonnies player since 1997-98 to score 20 or more points in eight straight games. Saturday was Johnson's 100th career start for the Bonnies.
- The Bonnies finished the contest shooting 46.0 percent (23-for-50) from the field and 44.4 percent (8-for-18) from 3-point range.
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