Box Score NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. –
Mia Hopkins (Pittston, Pa./Pittston Area) led the Monmouth University women's basketball team with 14 points off the bench, but the Hawks fell at Iona, 71-58, Friday evening at the Hynes Center. With the loss, the Hawks fall to 5-7 (1-2 MAAC), while the Gaels improve to 5-7 (2-1 MAAC) in earning a split of the season series.
Hopkins scored 11 points in the second half and made three of her four three-point field goals in the latter stanza.
Jasmine Walker (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) added 13 points, while
Jenny Horvatinovic (Red Lion, Pa./Red Lion Area) added nine rebounds.
Helena Kurt (Spanga, Sweden/Igelstavikens Gymnasium) chipped in with seven points, five rebounds and four assists.
Joy Adams led Iona with a double-double of 23 points and 11 rebounds to go along with four steals and four assists. Aaliyah Robinson narrowly missed a double-double with 17 points, nine rebounds and four assists, while Damika Martinez also finished in double figures with 14 points. Marina Lizarazu dished out 11 assists for the Gaels.
“We were really happy with our effort in both halves,” said Monmouth Head Coach
Jenny Palmateer. “We picked it up a little more in the second half. We just had to play a little bit smarter in the second half to maximize the effort we were giving. We were running around, but really not seeing the benefit from it. I think in the second half, we did a much better job of that. Iona did a good job in the first half taking it to us. They got a couple of easy transition baskets that I think got them the early lead. Then we were playing from behind and our shots weren't falling. It was tough.”
Monmouth played Iona fairly evenly in the early going, with
Sara English's (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West [UMass]) bucket at the 7:39 mark cutting the Gaels' lead to 21-18. But the Gaels scored 22 of the final 24 points of the first half to establish a 43-20 lead at the break.
Adams led Iona with 16 first-half points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Robinson added 11 points and six rebounds. Lizarazu dished out six assists in the initial stanza. Walker led Monmouth with seven points, while Horvatinovic grabbed seven rebounds in the first half. Iona outshot Monmouth, 52.8 percent (19-36) to 27.6 percent (8-29) from the floor.
Trailing by 22 early in the second half, Monmouth went on an 11-0 run to cut the deficit in half, 47-36, with 12:51 remaining. Walker scored four points in the run and Hopkins punctuated the spurt with a three-pointer. Six-straight points later in the half made it a single-digit deficit, 59-50, on a
Christina Mitchell (Baltimore, Md./MATHS) lay-up off a
Jamiyah Bethune (Union, N.J./Union [Penn St.]) feed with 7:27 left in regulation.
But momentum swung to Iona when Lizarazu was awarded a continuation on the Gaels' next possession. Iona's lead swelled to as many as 18 points and the Hawks would draw only as close as the final 13-point deficit.
For the game, Iona outshot Monmouth, 43.5 percent (30-69) to 32.8 percent (20-61) from the floor, including a 26.1 percent (6-23) to 24.1 percent (7-29) edge from long range. Iona also outrebounded Monmouth, 45-38. Monmouth took an 84.6 percent (11-13) to 71.4 percent (5-7) advantage from the free-throw line. Iona took a 36-18 advantage in points in the paint and a 16-6 edge on fast-break scoring. The Hawks' bench outscored Iona's reserves, 25-12.
The Hawks return to action Sunday, when they travel to long-time conference rival Quinnipiac. Tipoff from the TD Bank Sports Center is scheduled for 1 p.m.
