MEDFORD, MA (November 26, 2024) -- The Tufts University women's basketball team rallied from down 19 in the third quarter, pulling to within three with a minute to play but a tying triple late in the game wouldn't go as No. 3 University of Scranton held on for a 60-57 win over the Jumbos in non-conference play from Cousens Gymnasium Tuesday night.
Tufts (3-2) gave it everything it had down the stretch, as it turned a 56-39 deficit into just a three-point game with two minutes to play in regulation after a traditional three-point play from senior
Sofia Gonzalez. Tufts would get three stops down the stretch, including forcing a shot clock violation on a block by Gonzalez to get the ball back with 30 seconds to play. On the ensuing play, senior
Hannah Kelly's three-pointer was missed but
Annie Aspesi grabbed the offensive rebound. Tufts had two more three-point attempts to tie the game in the final 10 seconds, but neither would fall as Scranton (5-0) held on for the win.
The game was close in the opening stanza, as Gonzalez gave the Jumbos a 13-9 lead with four minutes to play in the first quarter. Scranton scored the final seven points of the opening frame, and used the momentum to go on a 21-1 run into the second quarter as the Lady Royals led 30-14. The lead would get up to as much as 18 during the second quarter, before
Annika Decker hit a jumper just before the end of the half to make it 42-26 at the halftime intermission.
The third quarter was mostly even, as Tufts trimmed its deficit down to 12 on a steal and bucket by first-year
Monet Witherspoon, but seven straight points gave the Lady Royals their largest lead of the game at 53-34 after a Meghan Lamanna bucket with 3:49 to go in the third. That's when the Jumbo defense would lock in, allowing just four Scranton points over the final 11 minutes of the game, as the lineup of Gonzalez, Decker,
Caitlyn O'Boyle, Kelly and Aspesi helped spur the near comeback.
Gonzelez finished with a season-high 15 points for the Jumbos, going 5-of-16 from the floor while adding seven rebounds and two steals in 32 minutes. Kelly was a huge spark off the bench, as she tallied a season-best 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting including three makes from behind the arc.
Callie O'Brien also had seven points and three rebounds, while Aspesi tallied six points and five caroms for Tufts. O'Boyle tallied a team-high 10 rebounds as well, while Decker played 38 of the game's 40 minutes.
Tufts shot 37 percent from the floor, but 6-of-12 shooting in the fourth quarter helped fuel the comeback while forcing Scranton into 2-for-12 shooting on field goals in the final stanza. Tufts posted a 15-5 edge in fast break points in the contest, and also tallied a 28-16 edge in bench points.
Scranton got a game-high 16 points from Lamanna, while Kaci Kranson added 11 points and six rebounds. Natalie Stoupakis also finished with 11 points off the bench for the Lady Royals.
Tufts will have a few days off before hosting Rhode Island College (3-1) Sunday at 1 p.m. inside Cousens Gymnasium.
--JUMBOS--
