Marist women’s basketball got back on track this afternoon, limiting Saint Peter’s to just 30 points on offense in a 50-30 victory. The 30 total points is tied for the fewest Marist has allowed since a 69-30 victory over Saint Peter’s in the MAAC tournament championship on March 13, 2021.
The Peacocks went 11-for-53 (20.8 percent) from the field in the contest while going 3-for-22 from beyond the arc. Phenom sophomore forward Fatmata Janneh entered the game averaging 19.5 points on 46.3 percent shooting from the field but was held to a 5-for-15 effort from the floor today.
Janneh was still the only driving force for the Peacocks with 17 points and 15 rebounds, with the next-highest scorer delivering just four points.
Freshman guard Danielle Williamsen led the scoring for the Red Foxes with 12 points, while redshirt junior guard Lexie Tarul and junior center Morgan Lee each garnered 11 points.
While junior forward Ciara Croker did not fill up the stat sheet today, she certainly made her presence felt by drawing the defensive assignment on Janneh and forcing tough shots the entire afternoon.
Williamsen got the Red Foxes’ offense underway with a 3-pointer, with Tarul and junior guard Jackie Piddock each following in her footsteps with a 3-pointer of their own. The Red Foxes started 3-for-3 from beyond the arc to open the game, a noticeable shift from their 1-for-14 performance from long range in their previous game against Fairfield.
Janneh responded by delivering her first triple of the game, but Williamsen answered back with a tough layup through contact, completing the and-one with just under a minute remaining in the first quarter. Williamsen led all Marist scorers with six points in the opening frame, giving the Red Foxes a 16-11 advantage going into the second quarter.
Sophomore guard Julia Corsentino drained her first shot from beyond the arc after a nice feed from Lee in the opening minutes of the second quarter. Marist stretched their lead to 10 early and forced the Peacocks to take a timeout.
The Marist offense stalled for a bit following the stoppage, scoring just two points over the next five minutes of the second quarter. The Red Foxes tried to get Lee going over the stretch, but her offensive struggles looked like they would continue this game, as she went 0-for-7 with three turnovers in the first half. Lee was 3-for-25 over her past two and a half games up to this point.
Redshirt sophomore guard/forward Nikola Zdenkova cashed in on a long 2-point attempt after a cross-court feed from Janneh just before the second-quarter buzzer sounded to make it 25-19 at the half. Janneh led the way for the Peacocks with eight points and seven rebounds but the strong defense of Croker forced Janneh to go 2-for-8 from the field while coughing up three first-half turnovers.
Williamsen once again started the Marist offense to open the quarter with a long 2-point shot. Tarul then knocked down her second triple of the game from the corner to give Marist their largest lead, 30-19.
Janneh got herself into double digits with her second 3-pointer of the game and collected her tenth rebound midway through the third quarter for her seventh double-double of the year.
Marist struggled to get the offense going in the third quarter after the Tarul triple but their dominant defensive presence allowed them to keep a sturdy lead. The Red Foxes went 2-for-13 from the field in the third frame but the Peacocks went 2-for-12 themselves, as Marist lead 36-26 going into the final quarter.
Lee eventually found her footing with her first basket of the game midway through the fourth quarter, finishing a layup through contact for the and-one. Lee then got her second layup a bit easier on the next possession, forcing Saint Peter’s to take a timeout.
Lee finished a wide-open layup out of the break to quickly put herself as the first Red Fox in double figures. Marist had a scoreless stretch of over five minutes before Lee’s much-needed 7-0 burst.
Williamsen got herself into double figures right with a floater to give Marist a 45-28 lead. Tarul then joined in on the double-digit point club by delivering her third 3-pointer, while Williamsen capped off a 14-0 run with another floater to put the game out of reach.
Marist will attempt to continue their strong defensive efforts in a road matchup against Rider on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Edited by Ben Leeds
Photo from Jaylen Rizzo
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