Columbia University
Manhattan
Furious Comeback Falls Short as Women's Basketball Drops 65-56 Decision to Manhattan
11/23/2010 9:02:00 PM | Women's Basketball
RIVERDALE, N.Y. -- Senior Kathleen Barry recorded the first double-double of her career with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and the Columbia University women's basketball team unfurled a 13-3 run toward the end of the second half to cut a 16-point deficit to six with just under two minutes remaining. But the comeback attempt would come up short as the Lions fell to Manhattan, 65-56, at Draddy Gymnasium on Tuesday evening.
After a nip-and-tuck first half in which neither team had a lead larger than six points, the Jaspers went on a 10-1 spurt to open the second half and stretch a four-point halftime cushion into a 13-point advantage. Three-pointers by Monica Roeder and Maggie Blair keyed the run and made the score 36-23 with 16:45 left in the second half.
The Manhattan lead would extend to as many as 16 points following a trifecta from Lindsey Loutsenhizer at the 6:05 mark of the second stanza. To that point, Columbia had gone an ice-cold 6-for-24 (25 percent) from the field in the second period.
But the Lions would not go down without a fight, and senior Lauren Dwyer commenced the rally with a pair of jumpers that sandwiched a free throw from Barry to cut the Jasper lead to 57-45 with 3:58 remaining.
A defensive stop gave the Lions a chance to slash into the lead further, and junior Melissa Shafer delivered with a three-ball from the wing to put the deficit under double figures at 57-48 with 3:24 to play. Following a timeout by head coach Paul Nixon to set up the defense, Barry stole the ball from Alyssa Herrington and went coast-to-coast to get Columbia to within seven.
Manhattan's Abby Wentworth converted on a driving hoop to push the home team's lead back to nine, but Shafer would respond with another three-pointer to pull the Lions to within two possessions at 59-53 with 1:59 remaining. For Shafer, the back-to-back three-pointers broke an 0-for-10 drought from beyond the arc to start the 2010-11 season after leading the Ivy League last year at 44.3 percent.
Another stop defensively gave Columbia a chance to get even closer, but the Lions could do no damage on their next possession and Wentworth scored the next four points of the game to bump the Jaspers cushion back to double-digits. First-year Taylor Ward drained her third three-pointer of the contest with 24 seconds to go and Roeder cashed in both free throws with 19 ticks left to give the Jaspers their final margin of victory.
Dwyer matched Barry for team scoring honors with 14 points, and added eight rebounds and three blocks in 34 minutes of action. Ward and fellow first-year Brianna Orlich each had nine points. Roeder led three Jaspers in double figures with a game-high 15 points, while Nadia Peters had a game-best 13 rebounds, including five on the offensive end.
Columbia will travel west following the Thanksgiving holiday for a contest against the University of San Diego on Saturday, Nov. 27. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. PST.
LION LINES
- Columbia narrowly lost the battle on the boards, 37-34. The Lions pulled down 19 offensive boards, including five by Barry and four by Orlich, that led to 17 second-chance points. Manhattan corralled 14 o-boards that led to 22 second-chance points.
- The Lions were once again menacing on defense, as they forced the Jaspers into 24 turnovers.
- Barry and Orlich each had three steals to lead the team, while Barry, Ward, Shafer and junior Jazmin Fuller had three assists apiece.
