SAN ANTONIO – The New Orleans women's basketball program went on a frantic final-minute comeback attempt but the game-tying basket at the buzzer fell just short as the Privateers dropped a Southland Conference contest to host UIW, 60-57, at the McDermott Center on Saturday.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: New Orleans – 57, UIW 60
LOCATION: McDermott Center – San Antonio, Texas
RECORDS: New Orleans 4-12 (1-9 SLC), UIW 5-4 (3-1 SLC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The two sides played a very entertaining, back-and-forth opening quarter that saw UIW take a 17-13 lead after one.
- New Orleans stormed back in the second to win the quarter by a 17-10 margin. The Privateers got themselves back in control of the game after a 10-0 run that stretched from 8:49 to 3:52 in the frame. With the strong showing, UNO took a three-point, 30-27 lead into the half.
- New Orleans continued to build its lead in the third as the Privateers posted a 16-12 advantage in the quarter to take a 46-39 edge into the fourth.
- UNO would go up by as much as seven with 8:34 left to play before the Cardinals started to go on a comeback. UIW went on a 10-0 run of its own to retake a 51-48 lead with 6:02 left to play in the game. New Orleans wasn't going to go away without a fight and scored seven unanswered points to make it 55-51 UNO with just over four minutes to go. UIW stormed back and went on an 8-0 run over the next two minutes of the game to go up 59-55. After a UIW turnover with just 15 seconds left as the Cardinals traveled as New Orleans was going for a foul, Randle cut the deficient to just two as she hit a layup with eight seconds to play. UIW headed to the line on the next possession after a quick UNO foul and went 1-of-2 as New Orleans got one last chance with less than five seconds to go. The game-tying three-point attempt was just off as the Privateers dropped the 60-57 road decision.
GAME NOTES
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Jada Duncantell led the way for New Orleans with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting. She also added three rebounds, three assists and a steal. It tied her second-highest point total recorded in a game this season.
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Dionjhae Thomas continued her run of double-digit scoring games as she recorded 13 points to go with six rebounds and five helpers. It was the seventh consecutive game that the senior forward has reached the 10-plus point plateau and the 11th time in total this year. Thomas did not leave the floor this afternoon as she played a career-high 40 minutes in the contest.
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Brianna Ellis was the third Privateer to crack the 10-point mark as she finished with 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting. She also added three rebounds and a steal. The point total tied a season and career-best that was set back on Dec. 16 against Missouri.
- Junior forward
Erin Randle was just short of her second career double-double as she put up nine points to go with eight boards. She also added an assist.
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Zanaa Cordis tied a season and career-best with two blocks. It is the fourth game this year that the freshman forward has sent back at least two opponents's shots in the same game. She also chipped in four points and four rebounds.
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Kyla Davis rounded out the scoring with five points to go with five boards.
- Only six student-athletes scored in the contest in total for a short-handed New Orleans program.
- The Privateers are still looking for their first road win of the season as the group fell to 0-9 away from the Lakefront Arena.
- New Orleans has yet to win a game this year in which they have not scored at least 60 points. As a team the Privateers are now 0-11 with less than 60 scored but improve to 4-1 overall when the squad is able to break the 60-point mark.
NEXT UP
The Privateers remain away from the Lakefront for one more contest as they finish their three-game road trip with a Southland showdown against McNeese, set for Saturday, Feb. 20 at the Burton Coliseum in Lake Charles, La. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 PM CT.
