Firebirds’ Late Rally Falls Short in 60-57 Loss at Queens
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Dist. Columbia (18-5, 14-3 ECC) | 25 | 32 | 57 |
|
Queens (N.Y.) (18-6, 14-4 ECC) | 35 | 25 | 60 |
FLUSHING, NY – The University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team was defeated for just the 2nd time in its last 12 outings as the Firebirds fell at Queens, 60-57 in East Coast Conference action Wednesday night.
With the loss, the Firebirds (18-5) fall to 14-3 in ECC play and drop to 2nd place in the league standings behind LIU Post, who defeated Mercy tonight, 88-62 to improve to 15-2. The Knights, who have now won seven of their last eight games, including three straight, improved to 18-6 overall and 14-4 in conference play. They sit in 3rd place with two pivotal matchups next week at 4th place NYIT (February 25th) and vs. LIU Post (March 1st) which could carry heavy implications for playoff seeding.
Junior forward Denikka Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS) led all scorers with a season-high tying 24 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Team leading scorer, junior transfer guard Telisha Turner (Criminal Justice – Wilmington, DE/Harcum), once again struggled from the field, making just 3-of-13 field goal attempts and 1-of-6 three-point attempts, as she finished six points under her season average with 12. Senior point guard Teara Shaw (Health Education – Bronx, NY/Indian River State) also added eight points, three steals and two assists.
The Rowland sisters, MacKenzie and Madison, were the catalysts in helping Queens avenge a 69-53 defeat against the Firebirds in the nation's capital back on January 18th. MacKenzie, a 6-foot-2 center, registered a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds along with three blocked shots, and Madison, a 5-foot-10 forward, hauled in a game-high 17 rebounds, scored 12 points and added four assists and three steals.
The Knights out-shot UDC 46-percent to 34-percent from the field and had a decisive, 47-37 rebounding edge. Both teams made only two three-pointers on the night, but Queens did so in six attempts compared to 15 by the Firebirds. Poor free-throw shooting by the Knights (8-of-19), especially down the stretch, allowed UDC to make a 14-2 run over the final six minutes of regulation and pull within two, 59-57, with 10 seconds remaining. But a game-tying three-point attempt by Turner fell way short of the rim as Queens ran off the clock with a three-point victory.
The Firebirds, who earlier today earned a No. 3 East Region ranking in the first weekly poll of the season, will look to bounce back as they host ECC foe Molloy on Saturday, February 22nd at 12 p.m.