PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - - Ten straight points to open the second half allowed the University of the Sciences to take a 68-59 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference women's basketball contest over Wilmington University on Tuesday night inside Bobby Morgan Arena.
The spurt gave the Devils (16-8, 11-4 CACC) a 20-point lead before the Wildcats (6-17, 3-13 CACC) fought back and eventually outscored the home team, 34-33, in the second half. But the comeback effort wasn't enough to overcome a 10-point halftime deficit.
Freshman Jasmine Lee led the offense for the second consecutive game, scoring a team high 16 points, while also grabbing six rebounds and gathering one steal. Junior Tashea Plummer added eight points off the bench while also grabbing a team high 11 boards, six of which came on the offensive glass.
Trailing by as many as 24 points in the second half, the Wildcats cut into the deficit late in the second half. In the final 6:50 of regulation, the Wildcats went on a 20-5 run to close out the contest and to settle on the final outcome. Auryonah Nash hit her lone three-pointer of the game to cut the deficit to 19 at 64-45, before Lee kick started a 6-0 run, called back back-to-back buckets from junior Jenn Carr.
Plummer converted on an old-fashioned three-point play with 1:40 left to bring Wilmington to with 12 points before Taylor Carter went 1-of-2 from the line with just over a minute to play. Plummer capped the scoring with another pair of free throws with nine seconds showing on the clock, making the junior 6-of-11 from the charity stripe for the night.
The Devils were led by Briane Traub's game high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting while Chisom Amaefuna added 16 points while also shooting 7-of-12 from the field for the game. Megan Wolf chipped in with 12 points off the bench for the home team.
Carter gave the Wildcats a quick 6-0 lead in the opening minutes of the game, hitting her first two three-pointers. The Devils responded with a 9-0 run of their own and took the lead for good on a three-pointer from Jessica Sylvester with 15:41 to play in the first half, breaking a 6-6 tie.
Wilmington's shots weren't falling on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats went 22-of-64 (34.4 percent) from the field and 11-of-19 from the foul line for the game. The Wildcats did shoot 4-of-9 from deep, however, led by Carter's 2-for-3 performance. Nash and Cari Callaway also hit a three-point attempt.
The Wildcats forced the Devils into 20 turnovers, resulting in 19 points for the visitors, but the Wildcats also turned the ball over 21 times which also resulted in 19 points at the other end for USciences. The Devils shot, 42.9 percent from the field for the game, 15-of-29 (51.7 percent) for the first half.
After three straight games on the road, the Wildcats return home for their next two contests, first against Felician on Saturday at the WU Athletics Complex. The cross-divisional matchup is set for a 1 p.m. tip.