Women’s Basketball Secures Playoff No. 4 Seed Behind O’Donnell’s 35 Against Mount Saint Vincent

BRONX, N.Y. — In a dramatic finish that saw six lead changes in the fourth quarter, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team topped the College of Mount Saint Vincent, 62-59, on Tuesday evening from the Sharp Center. The win gives the Bears the No. 4 seed and home court in the first round of the Skyline Conference Championship, scheduled to tipoff on February 25.

How it Happened

Kelly O'Donnell (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) and Jamie Provino (Harrison, N.Y./Harrison) posted the opening seven points for the Bears (15-9, 13-6 Skyline) but the Dolphins (13-10, 11-8 Skyline) would climb back. Following a two-minute lull, the hosts leveled the score before the Bears closed the first quarter on a 9-0 run; taking a 16-7 lead into the second stanza.

CMSV's Kira Villegas and DarNeisha Brice combined for the first 10 points of the second quarter, putting them on top 17-16. An O'Donnell three, with 5:44 left in the period, swung the lead back into the Bears' favor for the remainder of the half. With 2:50 remaining, O'Donnell and Emma Kiley (Whitestone, N.Y./Archbishop Molloy) led the Bears to a 10-0 run of their own to close out the opening 20 minutes with the 35-25 advantage.

St. Joseph's led by as many as 10 in the third quarter. However, Brice and Ashley Martin combined for 11 of Mount Saint Vincent's 18 third-quarter points; doubling nine SJC points scored by O'Donnell and Kiley. Despite CMSV's efforts in the period, the Bears held on to a one-point cushion, 44-43, going into the final 10 minutes.

The navy-and-gray lead grew to five, to start the fourth quarter, on buckets from Alexis Breen (Union Beach, N.J./Keyport) and Samantha Wilber (Island Heights, N.J./Central Regional); their first contributions to the contest. Another Dolphin 10-0 run gave them their first lead since the 8:30 mark of the second quarter. With the score favoring CMSV at 53-48, a pair of free throws by Kiley and O'Donnell saw the Bears tie and take the upper hand, 54-53. The two sides instantly traded leads with the Dolphins having a three-point edge, 59-56, with a minute to go. A Kiley layup with 16 ticks left put the Bears in front for good at 60-59. Deserae Sequeira (Clark, N.J./Arthur L. Johnson) knocked down both of her free throws to ice the game, giving the Bears the 62-59 win and the No. 4 seed in the upcoming Conference Championship.

For the Bears

• O'Donnell, the reigning Skyline Player of the Week, scored a game-high 35 points on 11-of-21 shooting; her third 30-plus game of the season. She also collected four rebounds and blocked two shots.
• Kiley, defending conference Rookie of the Week, logged 17 points, 13 rebounds and a pair of assists.
• Sequeira registered eight boards, four assists, and two points.

Up Next

The Bears close out the regular season this Saturday, February 22 hosting the College of Old Westbury on Senior Day. Opening tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. with live stats and video available on SJCBears.com/live.