ERIE, Pa. – IUP women's basketball battled past a slow start and attacked the paint in an 82-64 road win at Mercyhurst on Monday night in a key Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West matchup.
IUP (15-7, 10-7) peppered the paint area throughout the night and complimented it with timely outside shooting and strong defense in a bounceback victory on Monday. The Hawks held the overall advantage in paint points (44-26) and rebounding (36-29).
After starting the game slow, IUP bounced back in a big way near the tail end of the opening quarter and into the second.
Alana Cardona racked up 17 points (7-10 FG) with six rebounds, while
Teirra Preston added 18 points and nine rebounds in a balanced effort across the lineup.
Gina Adams went 3-for-4 from beyond the arc, finishing with a game-high 19 points for the Hawks, which shot 58.0% from the floor. Mercyhurst (12-10, 8-8) started the game with the initial nine points of the contest but shot just 34.4% from the floor. Julia Buchman logged a team-high 13 points and Bailey Kuhns added 11 points and seven boards to pace the Lakers, who were idle since a narrow one-point setback last week to Edinboro.
It marked the first win against an Erie County school (Mercyhurst, Gannon, Edinboro) this season for IUP, keeping pace in a logjammed PSAC Western division.
Maria Cerro was the lone player in double figures for either side in the opening half with 10 points, finishing with 18 on the night.
The Hawks scored 26 of their 30 first half points in the paint, holding a 26-12 edge over Mercyhurst inside. Cerro pushed the Hawks ahead for good at 20-19 with a bucket in the second quarter, a lead the visitors expanded with a strong start in the second half.
IUP battled back from a sluggish start, trailing 9-0, while committing nine turnovers early in the game. IUP slowly chipped away, climbing back to within 16-13 at the end of the opening quarter. The Hawks closed the opening stanza with seven of the final 11 points, including a triple from
Kiera Baughman with 25 ticks left.
The Hawks worked the score tied early in the second with an and-one basket from Cardona. On the next trip up the floor, Mercyhurst's Grace Centrulla was whistled for her third foul of the contest. With just their second lead of the game, Janeia Scott slashed inside to score a basket through contact, capping a 6-0 spurt for a 22-19 advantage at 7:09 left in the opening half.
The Hawks continued their momentum in the second stanza with tough defense, holding the Lakers scoreless for about three minutes. Preston converted a stickback as IUP continued holding the advantage of second chance points, leading 28-20 with 4:35 showing on the first half clock. The Preston putback was part of a larger 18-4 surge for the Hawks over a six-minute stretch, showing resiliency on the road.
The Hawks remained in front with time ticking away in the second quarter, pushing the lead to 30-24 on a Baughman driving basket. Julia Buchman trimmed the Mercyhurst deficit to 30-27 with 27 seconds left in the half, which provided the Lakers with some momentum in a narrow back and forth opening half.
IUP ballooned its advantage to seven, continuing the dominance in the paint with baskets from Preston and Cardona for a 34-27 edge.
Gina Adams canned a three from the left win, part of a quick start in the second half that included a 11-2 run to open the quarter.
Baughman followed her own shot with he shot clock winding down, sticking with it and pushing IUP ahead 41-29 about midway through the third period.
Mercyhurst, one of the top three-point shooting teams in the conference, was just 2-for-10 from beyond the arc with under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. For IUP, Cardona stepped out behind the arc to push IUP to a double-digit lead at 46-35 in a key swing. The Lakers trimmed the IUP lead back to six before Cardona got into double figures with the teams trading baskets up and down the floor.
Cardona delivered again for IUP near the end of the third, providing a double-digit cushion once again 53-42. The Hawks continued pressing forward with strong defense and methodical offense with Cardona posting two quick blocks and Adams canning a three from the right corner for a commanding 58-42 advantage.
The Hawks continued melting clock with a slow pace, converting in transition when the opportunity presented itself. Both sides began trading scores again with IUP able to maintain the advantage before closing out the game at the foul line.
Up Next
IUP faces a short turnaround, hosting Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday, February 8 at 5:30 p.m.
Follow
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