HACKENSACK, NJ - The Saint Peter's University women's basketball team saw its four-game winning streak ended Tuesday night in a narrow 66-60 loss at Fairleigh Dickinson. The Peacocks trailed by as many as 22 points during the affair and were able to trim the Knights' lead significantly in the late moments of the game, but fell just short as time expired.
Redshirt-senior
Taiah Thornton finished with a season-high 19 points on 50 percent shooting to lead Saint Peter's in scoring Tuesday night, while junior
Binta Salawu recorded a season-high of her own with 16 points, including a team-leading three triples. For the second game in a row, senior
Jessica Woods led the blue and white in rebounding, finishing with 10 boards on the night.
How It Happened
- The Knights controlled the flow for the first two and a half minutes of Tuesday night's game, going up 4-0 until Thornton scored two unanswered buckets in the paint to even things up.
- The Peacocks took their first lead following an unconventional three-point play from redshirt-senior Kendrea Williams after a key Peacocks steal.
- Following Tuesday's first media timeout, Saint Peter's held a narrow 9-8 advantage on the back of a key jumper from Salawu. The two sides traded blows for the remainder of the quarter, as the Peacocks went into the break leading 17-15.
- FDU regained a 26-19 lead with five minutes left to play in the half following an 11-2 run to start the second stanza. An offensive rebound and subsequent lay-up from freshman Ajia James then cut the Knights' lead to five
- An FDU triple with 1:46 left in the first half would give the Knights their first double-digit lead of the night, putting the hosts up 33-21. The Peacocks concluded the half trailing 37-24.
- Four unanswered buckets from FDU to open the second half extended its lead to 46-24. A Woods jumper from the top of the key three minutes into the half snapped the run and gave the Peacocks their first points of the quarter. Williams followed up with a three-pointer two possessions later, cutting the opposition's lead to 46-31.
- Salawu knocked down a deep ball from the corner off the feed from graduate Jenna Clark with just about a minute left in the third period, and a Thornton steal and lay-up on the next phase trimmed the FDU lead back to 15 (53-38).
- A pair of Salawu free throws to end the quarter brought the score to 53-40 in favor of the Knights.
- Saint Peter's got on the board early in the fourth frame following a classic steal and fast-break by Thornton who was able to beat the defenders for an easy lay-up. The FDU lead fell to 11 points just a moment later after another big triple from Salawu.
- Williams provided support with a deep-range shot of her own, narrowing the gap to 56-48 with just over seven minutes left to play. The difference remained until a shifty lay-up from Woods cut the lead to six (61-55) with 1:42 remaining.
- The game would close by the same margin, as the Knights were able to outlast the Peacocks 66-60.
Inside The Numbers:
- The duo of Salawu and Williams connected on a majority of their three-point shots against the Knights, finishing at 60 and 66.7 percent, respectively, from deep range.
- Thornton now has six double-digit outings under her belt on the season, while Salawu added her fourth such performance Tuesday against the Knights.
- After trailing 53-33 in the third quarter, the Peacocks were able to go on a 22-8 run to narrow the Knights' advantage to six points.
- Saint Peter's was unable to find success from beyond the arc in the first half of Tuesday night's matchup, but the squad was able to connect on five triples in the second half, finishing 5-of-9 from deep in the final 20 minutes.
- The two sides were nearly even in scoring down low on Tuesday, as Saint Peter's finished with 34 points in the paint compared to 36 points from FDU.
- The Peacocks finished slightly ahead of the Knights in rebounding, grabbing a total of 33 boards to the hosts' 32.
Coach's Quote - Marc Mitchell:
- "Not a great effort tonight for the full 40 minutes. We will get better."
Up Next:
- The Peacocks face a nine-day rest period before returning to action at Manhattan in the new year, a series against the Jaspers slated for Jan. 1-2. Both games are scheduled for 6 p.m.
