The MU women’s basketball team defeated Canisius 81-71 Sunday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center. Junior guard Tyese Purvis led all scorers with 21 points, including five three-pointers, setting a new season high for the Hawks. MU improved their record to 11-16 (9-9 MAAC), moving into a tie for sixth place with Siena.
“I shot the ball well today,” Purvis said after the game. “My teammates definitely found me a lot out on the three-point area. We set a lot of great screens to get ourselves open, and we held it down on the defensive end as well.”
The Hawks put three other players in double figures, including senior guard Sarah Olson (16 points), senior guard Jasmine McCall (14 points) and junior forward Christina Mitchell (12 points, seven rebounds). Senior guard Jasmine Walker added seven points, seven rebounds, and 4 assists.
Canisius opened the first two minutes with a 5-4 lead, but MU responded with a 13-0 run. After the Golden Griffins cut the MU lead down to single digits, McCall scored the last five points of the first quarter, making the score 25-11 after one.
The Hawks continued to extend their lead in the second, as Mitchell hit two consecutive shots to make the lead 18. Canisius was able to once again bring the lead down to single digits, making it a 36-27 game with 1:36 remaining in the first half. McCall scored again, and Canisius sunk one out of two free throws to make the halftime score 38-28.
MU came out hot in the second half with a 13-3 scoring run that extended their lead to 20 points halfway through the third quarter. The Golden Griffins responded with a run of their own, outscoring the Hawks 17-2 over the next four minutes to make it a five point margin with 1:18 remaining in the quarter. MU was able to stretch their lead back to seven, making the score 57-50 after three.
Canisius brought the lead own to six in the fourth quarter, but Purvis knocked down a three-pointer and Olson scored five straight to extend the lead back to 11 with 4:07 remaining. From that point, Canisius would get no closer than nine, making the final score 81-71.
“I think our offense is being fed by our defense right now,” head coach Jenny Palmateer said.“ The focus for the last few games, particularly in the last two, has been to play with a lot of energy and to really get down on the defensive end. We’ve been forcing some turnovers and getting some easy buckets off that.”
This marks the second consecutive victory for the Hawks, with the first coming Friday night, as they defeated Niagara University 68-55 at the “Taps” Gallagher Center. Senior guard Jamiyah Bethune scored a team high 17 points, with junior forward Christina Mitchell contributing 14 points and a team high 6 rebounds. Senior guard Sarah Olson was the only other Monmouth player to reach double digits, scoring 13 points in the contest.
“I’m really happy with our defensive effort today,” head coach Jenny Palmateer said after the Niagra game. “That’s the best full-court and half-court defense that we’ve played in a long time, and everybody did a great job to contribute on the defensive end.”
MU held the Purple Eagles to just 55 points, forcing 24 turnovers and scoring 26 points off of those turnovers. It was the third time this season the Hawks have held the opposing team to 55 points or less.
The team won three out of four games on their road trip, as they return home Thursday night to face Rider. Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m. and the game can be found on ESPN3 and WMCX 88.9 FM.
PHOTO COURTESY of Monmouth Athletics
