 "Photo: Tyler McDermott")
The UNH women’s basketball team began their season with a rousing 64-56 win over Saint Joseph’s University this past Friday.
Led by redshirt sophomore forward Denise Beliveau, the Wildcats were able to overcome a second half deficit to win the season opener. Beliveau, who sat out all of last season with a knee injury, led the Wildcats in scoring with 21 points to go along with nine rebounds and two steals.
“You can’t describe the feeling of playing after sitting out for a year. I haven’t played a game in twenty months,” said Beliveau after the game. “It just feels so good to be back out there with the team.”
“[Beliveau] plays so hard all the time,” said UNH head coach Kristin Cole. “When you play that hard, good things will happen. I’m really proud of her.”
Down 47-39 with a little over ten minutes left in the second half, the Wildcats went on a 12-2 run, capped off by old fashioned three-point plays from Beliveau and senior forward Candace Williams to give the Wildcats a 51-49 lead with seven and half minutes to go in the game.
“We showed a lot of resilience as a team, coming back from being down,” said Williams, who finished with 15 points and five rebounds.
After trading baskets back and forth, junior center Jill McDonald made yet another three-point play with three minutes remaining to give the Wildcats the lead, 56-54, this time for good. With thirty seconds left in the game, sophomore guard Lauren Wells hit two clutch free throws to give UNH the two possession lead. A few desperation three-point heaves by Saint Joseph’s and a couple more free throws by the Wildcats sealed the win.
Defense was key for UNH in this game, as they held St. Joseph’s to 28 percent shooting from the field and 24 percent from three-point land.
“We have gotten a lot better defensively, it’s like night and day from last year,” Cole said.
The Wildcats got off to a great start, as they built a 24-12 lead ten minutes into the first half. But a 15-3 run by St. Josephs closed the gap before three UNH free throws made the score 30-27 in favor of the Wildcats going into halftime. UNH committed 12 first half turnovers and 22 total in the game, allowing St. Joe’s to keep the game close throughout the first half and take an early lead in the second.
“We have to get better at that; we have to value the possession of the ball,” coach Cole said. “But I think where the game was won was at the foul line and rebounding. We got to the foul line more and we outrebounded them.”
Saint Joseph’s managed to grab an early second half lead on the strength of four 3-pointers from Shelby Smith and a harassing defense that created numerous Wildcat turnovers. But once the lead reached its high-water mark of eight points with ten minutes remaining, UNH began their rally towards victory.
“More than anything, I was pleased that the team never quit,” commented Cole. “They never stopped believing that we could win. That’s what I’m the most proud of, because they battled the whole time and never let the score affect how they played.”
The Wildcats’ next home game is on Friday, Nov. 20, against the University of Massachusetts. Tipoff is 7 P.M. at Lundholm Gymnasium.
Be the first to comment on this article!