January 24, 2007

BOX SCORE

ELON, N.C.—Longwood women’s basketball was unable to overcome a 14 point halftime deficit in this afternoon’s 48-39 loss at Elon.  The Lancers (6-16) battled back in the second half to take their first lead of the game with 5:50 remaining in the game, but could put the home squad away as Elon (9-11) closed the game on 13-0 run.  Leading the way for the Lancers was Ashleigh Hollman/Centreville (Westfield) who recorded a game-high 12 points while Elon’s Tierra Bumbrey finished the contest with 11.  Longwood will return to action on Saturday, February 3, when they host Columbia Union in a 7 p.m. match-up at Willett Hall.

The Lancers had a tough going in the first ten minutes as Longwood recorded eight turnovers in its first nine possessions, helping Elon build an 11-3 going into the first media timeout.  Hollman ended a five minute scoreless drought on a three-pointer to bring the deficit back down to eight with 12:41 to go in the opening half.  

“The first ten minutes of the game we were pushing too much and forcing the ball into situations and spots we shouldn’t have put it,” stated head coach Pamela Bass.  “We were focusing on the individual side rather than the team and detail we came in with.  Coming into the game we knew that rebounding and turnovers were going to be the game breakers, and we were unable to take care of basketball.  Our early turnovers created Elon’s offense and gave them momentum.”  

The Phoenix continued to attack on the offensive end and led by as many as 15 after Shashonna Moore hit a jumper with 7:08 left.  Keiva Small/Norfolk (Norview) hit a jumper on Longwood’s following possession and Courtney Dyer/Richmond (Monacan) completed a three-point play the next time down the floor to cut the Longwood deficit to ten points with 5:03 to go before halftime.  The Phoenix closed the half strong, grabbing the 27-13 advantage heading into the locker room.  At the break the Lancers committed 16 turnovers and Elon had 16 of its 27 points came off of the Lancer miscues.

Longwood started to chip-away at the deficit from the opening whistle of the second half, getting a defensive stop on the Phoenix’s first possession and putting in a lay-up on the other end for the 27-15 score.  After Urysla Cotton hit a jumper to build the lead back to 14 points, the Lancers put together a 20-8 run started off on a jumper by Small with 15:26 to go in the game.  After Odessa Williams/Stratford, Conn. (Stratford) blocked a shot on the defensive end, Small picked up the loose ball and finished the play on the other end putting in a lay-up to bring Longwood within nine at the 12:55 mark.

Hollman was the leading force in the run, as the guard hit two crucial threes, one to bring the Lancers within seven and the other to bring the visiting squad within two with 7:39 to go in the game.  

Longwood got its first lead of the game on a pair of free throws by Hollman, after Elon’s head coach was hit with a technical foul with 5:50 to go in the game.  After Small hit a jumper from the elbow, the Phoenix came down the floor and Bumbrey hit a three-pointer to end Elon’s six minute drought and bring the game within one.  The three-pointer by Bumbrey gave all the momentum to the home squad as Longwood was unable to record another point in the final 4:22 of the game.

“I’m going to take the first 14 minutes of second half with me from the game,” said Bass.  “Our strong play on defense helped us make the run and create offensive situations to over come the large deficit.  I’m proud of fight we had today and we played the game of basketball and didn’t worry about what the scoreboard read.”

Behind Hollman’s 12 points was Small who tallied ten of her own, while pulling down nine rebounds in 36 minutes of action.  Longwood finished the game shooting 31.1% from the floor while Elon shot 31.7% from the field.

“We are beginning to see the growth of the team and will continue to grow further in the next month of the season,” explained Bass.  “The key to maturing as a team is taking responsibility rather than blaming and we are doing that even though you don’t see it in the final scores.”