Cold Shooting Night Sends Dartmouth to Loss against Bryant

Wednesday, December 7

Hanover, N.H.

7:00 PM

Dartmouth College

BRYANT

Cold Shooting Night Sends Dartmouth to Loss against Bryant

12/7/2011 10:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball

By: Dartmouth

HANOVER, N.H. - The Dartmouth women's basketball team couldn't overcome a cold shooting night and an extended first half scoring drought and dropped a 63-45 contest to Bryant at Leede Arena on Wednesday night.

Dartmouth (2-5) shot 23.1 percent (15-of-65) from the floor for the contest, while Bryant (5-3) shot 41.2 percent (21-of-51) including a blistering 54.2 (13-of-24) in the second half. The Big Green were able to capitalize on Bryant's turnovers, scoring 18 points off of Bulldog miscues.

Sophomore guard Nicola Zimmer (Chevy Chase, Md.) led Dartmouth with 13 points, her first game in double figures this season and was joined in double figures by classmate Janelle Ross (Inglewood, Calif.) who added 11 points in the loss. Freshman Kamala Thompson (Seldon, N.Y.) posted a career-best 11 rebounds.

Dartmouth entered the second half trailing, 24-17 and used two free throws from junior guard Faziah Steen (Detroit, Mich.) to keep the game in double digits but Bryant used a 16-0 run, scoring baskets on each of its next six possessions, to jump out a 44-19 lead, the largest lead of the game, at the 14:09 mark.

Ross ended the Big Green's nearly seven minute scoring drought with a jumper in the paint followed by a three-pointer from Zimmer but couldn't find away to slow the Bryant's Katie Whittington and Meredith Soper who each had 10 second-half points. Dartmouth was able to get the lead down to 12 points with less than two minutes remaining but the Bulldogs went 6-of-6 from the free throw line to close the game and pick up their first win over the Big Green in the last four meetings.

Both squads wanted to get up and down the court from the opening tip. Bryant opened the game with a triple from Meredith Soper but Zimmer was feeling it from long range with two three-pointers early as the Big Green took an early 8-3 advantage into the first media timeout.

Bryant used a 7-2 run to take a 10-8 lead after the media timeout and from that point both teams struggled from the floor, going a combined seven minutes without a field goal. Bryant's Naana Ankoma-Mensa ended the drought with a layup at the 9:25 mark of the first stanza.

Ross hit two free throws to keep the game the Bryant lead at a manageable 12-10 at the 9:02 mark but a pair of free throws from Bryant's Steph Cardamone and a jumper from Ankoma-Mensa pushed the Bulldog lead to 16-10.

Thompson finally scored Dartmouth's first field goal in over 10 minutes - a three-pointer - with 6:51 remaining in the first half and Dartmouth was able to get the lead down to a single point, 16-15, with five minutes in the half but the Bulldogs closed the half on a 8-2 run to take a 24-17 lead into the halftime break.

The Big Green and Bulldogs both struggled from the floor in the first half, with Dartmouth only shooting 20.0 percent (6-of-29) from the floor in the first half and allowing Bryant to capitalize on second chance points with nine buckets on second opportunities.

Dartmouth closes its three-game homestand when it welcomes Hartford from America East to Leede Arena on Monday (Dec. 12). The Big Green and Hawks will tipoff at 4 p.m.

Big Green Sidelines

-Dartmouth moves to 3-1 against Bryant. The teams first started playing in the 2008-09, when the Bulldogs first began their transition to NCAA Division I status.

-Milica Toskovic made her first appearance in the last three games at the 15:57 mark of the first half. Toskovic was out with injury.

-Thompson recorded a career-high 11 rebounds and became the second Big Green player to record double figure rebounds this season. Steen also had 11 rebounds in a win over Vermont.

-Dartmouth had seven blocks for the second consecutive game.