NEW ORLEANS - Taking their first lead of the game in the second half,
Denver was able to hold on to it the remainder of the contest in a
55-49 win over the University of New Orleans on Saturday night at
Lakefront Arena.
DU (15-12, 10-6) won for the second time in eight games by putting together their best offensive performance in a month, shooting 50 percent from the field.
Kaetlyn Murdoch and Brittnei Rice were the top scorers for the Pioneers, scoring 16 and 11 points, respectively.
Brittany Helm made the most of her final home appearance for UNO (10-17, 4-12 SBC) by scoring a game-high 18 points after an 8 of 14 effort from the field. Two other seniors stepped up for head coach
Amy Champion with
Candice McGee notching a double-double with 10 points and 16 rebounds while
Nicole Holmes scored 10 points of her own.
Shooting woes caught up with the Lady Privateers in the second half. After shooting 41.7 percent in the first half, UNO cooled off in the second, shooting 30.8 percent from the field over the last 20 minutes.
DU took their first lead of the game at 27-26 within the first two minutes of the second half. The Pioneers lead peaked at 44-36 before four straight points by the by the Lady Privateers cut the deficit in half.
A Holmes three-point play would trim the deficit to four points at 49-45 before a Helm fast-break lay-up put the hosts within two at 49-47. The two-point deficit was the closest the Lady Privateers would reach as a Brianna Culberson three-pointer iced the game on the ensuing possession.
UNO entered halftime with a 26-23 lead with Helm leading the way with 10 points and the team having just six turnovers after 20 minutes.
The Lady Privateer lead was as large as nine at 20-11 with 8:14 left in the opening half. UNO had previously broke an early tie at two with a 10-2 run to take a 12-4 lead.
UNO will close their regular season with two games on the road in Arkansas, starting Wednesday night at Arkansas State.
