Bulldogs Pull Away From Women's Basketball in Brooklyn Battle

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team assembled an 11-0 third-quarter run to erase an 11-point deficit, but couldn't corral borough rivals Brooklyn College, falling 55-45 on Saturday afternoon in their final non-conference game of the season.

The Basics

• Final Score: Brooklyn 55, St. Joseph's 45
• Records: Brooklyn (12-4, 8-0 CUNYAC), St. Joseph's (5-12, 4-4 Skyline)
• Date: January 16, 2016
• Location: Brooklyn, N.Y.
• Arena: The Hill Center
• Starters:
  • St. Joseph's: Eddy (G), Marino (G), Simon (G), Porcasi (G), Candelaria (F)
  • Brooklyn: Holder (G), Vento (G), Moogan (G), Colbert (F), Ajee-Thomas (C)

Turning Point

• With the Lady Bears gaining momentum late in the 4th pulling within four, a jumper from Olivia Colbert and a back-breaking three-pointer from Justine Vento pushed the Bulldogs back up nine, 49-40, with just over three minutes to play.

How it Happened

• The visitors built a seven-point lead in the first quarter, but the Lady Bears closed the period on a 5-0 burst from a Victoria Porcasi trifecta and a Destiny Marino steal-and-layup to trail 12-10 at the first break.
• A low-scoring first half continued through the second quarter with SJC able to connect on just 1-of-16 and held to a season-low four points in the second stanza. Brooklyn shot only 26 percent (5-of-19) in the period and took a 23-14 lead into the lockers.
• A layup from Twanda Holder to open the third quarter created the largest separation in the game at 25-14, but the Lady Bears would claw their way back into the game using full-court pressure to score 11 unanswered over a 2:26 span, capped by a Marino triple that put SJC on top, 30-27. But the Bulldogs bit back, closing the third outscoring the Lady Bears 11-1 for a 38-31 at the final break.
• Marino and Porcasi combined to score all 14 points for SJC in the fourth quarter and cut the deficit to four on two occasions trying to stage a comeback. But the Bulldogs ran off five unanswered and Justine Vento's three-pointer at 3:16 stopped the Lady Bears momentum as the Bulldogs took a 49-40 lead.

For the Lady Bears

• Destiny Marino draining both her three-point attempts to lead the Lady Bears with 15 points. The sophomore also pulled down seven boards and swiped five steals.
• Reigning Skyline Rookie of the Week Victoria Porcasi finished in double figures for the fourth straight game with 14 points and four rebounds. The freshman was a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe, a category she leads the Skyline.
• Junior Kristen Candelaria matched a season-high seven points, also securing 11 caroms-—her sixth double-digit rebound game of the season—and rejected a career-high four shots.

For the Bulldogs

• Taylor Gallagher led a balanced Brooklyn offense with 11 points.
• Olivia Colbert registered a 10-point, 18-rebound double-double with four assists and four steals.
• Twanda Holder, Justine Vento and Alexandra Moogan added eight points apiece.

Inside the Box Score

• The Lady Bears held their opposition to season-lows of 55 points and 32.4 percent shooting from the field, but their 45 points total was a season-worst against a Division III opponent.
• The Bulldogs maintained a 58-42 advantage on the boards, including 19 on the offensive end, that the converted into a 17-5 differential in second-chance scoring.
• The sloppy game saw 47 combined turnovers (BC=24) with the visitors more opportunistic with a 25-19 edge in points off turnovers.

The Bear Facts

• St. Joseph's falls to 14-10 in the all-time series with the Bulldogs now taking eight straight.

Next up for the Lady Bears

St. Joseph's will now turn their focus to Skyline Conference play with eight more league games remaining in hopes of qualifying for the Skyline Tournament. The fifth-place Lady Bears welcome undefeated league leader Sage College to the Hill Center on Wednesday, January 20th. The women lead off the doubleheader with the men starting at 5:30 p.m. with live stats and video on SJCBears.com.