Women’s Basketball’s Comes Up Short to JWU, 76-67

BOSTON – Despite a late comeback effort, Suffolk women's basketball fell short to Johnson & Wales on Saturday afternoon in Conference of New England (CNE) action at Larry E. and Michael S. Smith Court, 76-67.

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 67 | Johnson & Wales 76
RECORES: Suffolk (8-6, 2-3 CNE) | Johnson & Wales (10-4, 4-1 CNE)  

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Johnson and Wales jumped out to a 12-2 lead, which caused Ed Leyden to take a timeout early four minutes into the action. The Rams rallied out of the break, outscoring the visitors, 8-2, over the final 5:59 of the first half to trim the distance to four, 14-10. 
• The Wildcats poured in nine unanswered over the first three minutes to put the blue-and-gold in a 24-10 hole. A 14-point margin remained with 2:50 left in the half, however, six straight Suffolk points allowed the host to cut the edge to eight, 29-21 at the 33-second mark. A last second old-school 3-point play by Grace Jaffray sent the Wildcats into the locker room with a 32-21 advantage. 
• Roles reversed to get the third underway as Suffolk went on a 9-2 stretch to cut the distance down to four, 34-30, at the 7:21 mark. The teams traded hoops, which kept the gap at four, 39-35, at the midway point when Leyden called a timeout. Momentum shifted in the Wildcats' favor as they heated up from downtown to send the blue-and-gold into the fourth trailing, 56-41. 
• The opening of the fourth quarter reverted to the usual storyline of JWU pouring in six straight to take a 20-point lead with 8:04 remaining in regulation. 
•  The Rams made one final push to comeback and managed to pull within 12, 67-55, with 3:08 left. That scoring spurt was fueled by Tatiana Tune and Allison Bono, who supplied four points apiece.
• Out of a JWU timeout it turned into a 3-point competition as Jordan Moreau and Claire Berkowitz sandwiched longballs around a Brianna Foley triple to slice the distance down to nine, 70-61, at the 1:31 mark. 
• A quick 6-2 Suffolk stretch brought Suffolk within five at 72-67 and forced the Wildcats into a timeout with 26 seconds remaining.
• Jaffray iced the game with four consecutive free throw makes to send JWU over the finish line with a 76-67 victory. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Tune led the way with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and seven rebounds.
• Bono trailed with 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting to go with six boards and four assists.
• Moreau rounded out the double-digit scorers with 16 points.
• Berkowitz eight points provided a spark off the bench for the Rams. 

NOTEWORTHY

• Tune set career highs with 19 points and eight field goals made.
• Thurman's six boards tied her personal-best tally. 

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk is back at the basement of the Ridgeway Building Wednesday, Jan. 14 for a midweek match with Roger Williams at 5:30 p.m.