BROOKLYN, NY - The Saint Peter's University women's basketball team started off the regular season on the right foot Tuesday night, defeating the LIU Sharks, 89-74, in an impressive display of offensive firepower. First-year Peacocks
Yamel Abreu,
Gabrielle Harris,
Taiah Thornton, and
Kendrea Williams all put in double-digit performances to help the Peacocks secure the win.
How It Happened
- Harris was the first to put points on the board for the Peacocks, putting in the layup and drawing the foul less than 30 seconds into the game.
- A few phases later, Williams and Harris combined on back-to-back three-pointers to put the Peacocks up 8-2.
- In the second quarter, Tyara McQueen knocked down a big shot from beyond the arc with 4:30 left in the half to put the Peacocks up 26-19.
- Late in the second stanza, Thornton sent a rocket of a pass nearly the length of the court to Abreu, who put in a contested layup to give the Peacocks a 28-23 advantage.
- McQueen would close out the half for Saint Peter's by hitting yet another three with 1:15 left to make it a 37-26 advantage for the visitors heading into the break.
- Senior forward Zoe Pero put up the first basket of the second half on a mid-range jumper off an assist from Williams with 9:08 remaining in the third.
- With just over seven minutes remaining in the third quarter, Harris came up with a steal off an interception and sent the clean assist to Williams on the fast break who had an easy layup on the other end, extending the Peacocks' lead to 45-33.
- With just over 5:07 remaining in the game, Harris drew a shooting foul and sank both free throws; but that wasn't all, she then stole the ball following a Sharks inbound, drew another shooting foul and sank the subsequent shots that all but sealed the victory as the redshirt junior recorded four points and a steal all within the span of six seconds.
Inside The Numbers:
- The Peacocks' 89-point output stands as the highest single-game scoring mark by the team since scoring 90 against Delaware on November 25, 2017 in double overtime.
- Both Gabrielle Harris (27) and Kendrea Williams (20) scored at least 20 points in Tuesday night's win, a feat which has not been accomplished by a Saint Peter's duo since Bridget Whitfield (24) and Aziza May (21) accomplished the task on February 22, 2013.
- All four players, (Abreu, Harris, Thornton, and Williams), who scored in double-digits tonight did so in their Saint Peter's debuts.
- Thornton held the lone double-double for Saint Peter's, notching 16 points and 11 rebounds on the night.
- Pero led the team in blocks with four, while also recording eight points, eight rebounds, and an assist.
- As a team, Saint Peter's never trailed in the contest, leading for over 38 minutes and for 96.3 percent of the game.
Coach's Quotes - Marc Mitchell
- "Great win for our first time out with a new team."
- "Very pleased with how well we played together as a team and as a unit."
- "We do have some things that we need to clean up and work on, and we should have it cleaned up by Wagner."
Up Next:
- The Peacocks will head to Staten Island next to take on Wagner on Wednesday, Nov. 13 for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.
