Firebirds Women’s Basketball Uses Hot Start, Late Flourish to Blow By Bowie State, 60-40

BOWIE, MD – The University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team soared to a 24-7 lead over the first 11 minutes of play and finished with a 21-6 flourish over the final eight minutes of play as the Firebirds blew by local rival Bowie State, 60-40 in non-conference action Saturday afternoon at A.C. Jordan Arena.

The Firebirds have now won four of their last five games, including their last three as they go over .500 for the first time this season at 4-3 overall. Bowie State has now lost its last three games as they fall under .500 at 2-3. District of Columbia has now won the last six meetings between these two local rivals dating back to 2008.

Senior guard Janelle Junior (Administration of Justice – Riverside, CA/La Sierra HS) led all scorers with 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field (3-of-7 from behind-the-arc) and 3-of-4 from the foul line. Sophomore guard Denikka Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS) was also a major offensive force with 17 points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Tajruba Baldwin-Kollore (Public Health – Newport News, VA/Denbigh HS) added eight points while junior forward Robin Keke (Biology – Bowie, MD/Bowie H S) pulled down a team-best nine rebounds in front of her hometown crowd.

Bowie State, which shot just 12-of-58 from the field (21-percent) and 3-of-20 from three-point range (15-percent), was led by junior center Moriah Goodman (eight points, five rebounds) and sophomore guard/forward Jasmine McIntosh (six points, 12 rebounds).

The Firebirds connected on three of their first four three-point field goals of the day as they raced out to a commanding 24-7 lead by the 8:55 mark of the first half. Junior and Baldwin-Kollore led the way with six points apiece during that stretch. But back came Bowie State, as Brian Robinson scored five points to lead the Bulldogs on a 10-0 run to cut the Firebird lead to seven with just under four minutes left to play in the half. That seven point margin would stick, as District of Columbia settled for a 28-21 lead heading into halftime.

In the second half, the Firebird lead hovered between four and nine points for the majority of the second half until District of Columbia blew the game open with a 21-6 outburst over the final 8:26. Clinging to a 39-34 lead after a pair of free-throws by BSU's Jasmine Jacobs, Robin Keke scored the next three consecutive points followed by a layup by junior point guard Teara Shaw (Health Education – Bronx, NY – John F. Kennedy HS) to quickly up the Firebirds lead to 10 with a little over six minutes left to play. Junior and Brent then combined for 16 points, including the final six points of the day, as District of Columbia went on to win by their largest margin, 60-40.

District of Columbia held a 40-percent to 21-percent field goal shooting advantage and fared much better, 42-percent (5-of-12) to 15-percent (3-of-20) from three-point range. The Firebirds, now 4-0 when they out-rebound their opponent, also held a 43-37 rebounding edge and more than doubled-up the Bulldogs in points in the paint, 24-10.

The Firebirds will look to win their fourth straight game when they visit Bridgeport in their East Coast Conference season opener on Saturday, December 8^th at 1 p.m.