MEDFORD, MA (January 27, 2023) -- The Tufts University women's basketball team forced 25 Williams College turnovers Friday night while playing strong defense in propelling the Jumbos to an important 64-50 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) victory in action from Cousens Gymnasium.
The Jumbos (13-6, 4-1 NESCAC) pressured the Ephs all evening, and that defensive intensity translated to the other side of the court as well. The Ephs scored seven of the game's first nine points but Tufts rattled off 13 straight points with six coming from junior forward
Maggie Russell to take a 15-7 lead with 2:58 to play in the opening frame. Tufts would maintain that seven-point edge going into the second quarter, but the Ephs came back to deadlock the game with 5:30 to go in the half on a jumper from Arianna Gerig.
Tufts answered right back with back-to-back triples from sophomore
Sofia Gonzalez, followed by a lay-up off a beautiful pass from
Callie O'Brien in transition to push the hosts back up by eight with 4:10 remaining in the opening 20 minutes. The Ephs wouldn't go away though, scoring the period's last four points to take a four-point deficit into the halftime break at 29-25 Tufts.
The third quarter turned out to be the difference in the game for the Jumbos, as the hosts outscored their visitors 15-6 in the period while holding Williams to 3-of-11 shooting in the stanza. On the other side, Tufts made 7-of-13 (53.9 percent) from the floor in the third quarter to lead by as 13 points going to the fourth. In the third quarter, Williams (13-7, 4-2 NESCAC) trailed by just four with four minutes into the half, but Tufts put together a 9-0 spurt to end the quarter to make it 44-31.
The Ephs did claw back into the game, making it a two-possession contest with 7:03 to play on a Gerig three-pointer, but a Russell lay-up and
Callie O'Brien three-point play pushed the Tufts advantage back up to double-figures. Tufts lead would hover around 10 for the remainder of the game, as O'Brien hit four free throws in the last minute to ice the win.
The Jumbos got some balanced scoring on Friday night, as Russell was efficient in getting to her 20 points. The junior was 9-of-18 from the floor, adding nine rebounds and three steals. O'Brien finished with season-highs of 16 points and seven assists, going 5-of-10 from the floor while also making all of her six free throw attempts. Gonzalez hit four three-pointer on her way to 14 points, posting three steals as well, and
Caitlyn O'Boyle came off the bench to lead the team with 11 rebounds and two blocks.
Annika Decker posted six rebounds and four assists for Tufts, which went 25-of-65 from the floor for the contest. Tufts earned a 44-33 edge on the glass Friday night, while finishing with a 32-18 edge in points in the paint. Williams saw Gerig lead the way with 13 points and nine rebounds, adding six assists, four blocks and three steals in the loss.
Tufts will be right back at home Saturday afternoon for more NESCAC action, hosting Middlebury College (11-8, 3-3 NESCAC) inside Cousens Gymnasium at 3 p.m. in Medford, MA.
--JUMBOS--
