NEWARK, Del. - - A total team effort by the Wilmington University women's basketball team led to an 85-61 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference victory over Concordia on Saturday afternoon at the WU Athletics Complex.
The game was delayed for a half an hour due to a leak on the court, but that didn't stop the Wildcats (6-14, 3-10 CACC) offensively as they produced their best shooting percentage of the season (28-of-61, 45.9 percent). The Wildcats also forced Concordia (0-19, 0-12 CACC) into 29 turnovers which turned into 31 points at the other end.
Junior Jenn Carr led the way with her second double-double of the season, scoring a season high 12 points while tying her season high with 11 rebounds. Senior Lauren Brown was nearly perfect from the floor, shooting 6-of-7 from the field, missing her only three-pointer of the game, while adding 2-of-3 from the foul line for 14 points off the bench. Sophomore Tenicia Spence led the Wildcats with 18 points and three steals on the afternoon. All 12 Wildcats that saw action on Saturday found their way into the scoring column.
Brown put the Wildcats ahead for the good in the first half, hitting the first of her two free throws with 6:30 remaining to break a 20-20 tie. It was the sixth tie of the first half, as the game was back and forth through the first 14 minutes of action.
A 5-0 spurt by the Wildcats opened an eight point lead for the home team, as Brown converted an old fashioned three-point play followed by a pair of free throws from freshman Jocelyn Rodriguez. Carr hit the final bucket of the first half with 24 seconds remaining, keeping the Wildcats ahead by eight points heading into the halftime break.
Concordia came out with back-to-back buckets to start the second half before the Wildcats took their lead to double digits. Spence started the 6-0 run with a layup while Tashea Plummer and Auryonah Nash followed with back-to-back baskets to put the Wildcats up 45-34 with 16:57 remaining.
The lead grew to as large as 25 points for the Wildcats after another 6-0 run turned a 14 point lead into a 76-56 advantage for the first time on the afternoon. A free throw by Taylor Carter and back-to-back baskets by Brown and Tiaja Harrold moved the lead to 83-58 with 2:30 to play.
The 24 point victory was the largest margin of victory since the Wildcats defeated Chestnut Hill, 67-42, on January 26, 2010.
The only spot on the floor that wasn't working for the Wildcats on Saturday was from beyond the three-point arc, as they went 1-of-6 from deep against the Clippers. The Wildcats shot 16-of-27 from the floor in the second half and finished the game 28-of-38 from the charity stripe.
The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Wildcats, as they now look forward to winning their second straight contest for the first time this season. The Wildcats will hit the road for their next three games, starting with CACC South Division leading Philadelphia. Wilmington will travel to Philadelphia on Wednesday for a 6 p.m. start.