NORTON, Mass. – Senior guard Greta Minos (Boston, Mass.) came off the bench to pour in a career-high 23 points to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team over visiting Curry College, 62-57, this evening at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons improve to 1-2 on the season following their home opener, while the Colonels dip to 0-1 in their first game of the season.
The victory was the first for first-year Head Coach Kanika Cummings.
Wheaton shot 43.6% (24-55) from the floor and was 50% or better in the first (58.8%) and third quarters (50.0%), while owning a 40-27 rebounding advantage. Curry was held to 36% (18-50) from the floor, despite getting red-hot in the second quarter, knocking down 64.3% (9-14) of its shots. The teams combined for 46 turnovers, including 25 from the Lyons, who were outscored 27-20 in points off miscues.
Minos was 9-16 from the field and added six rebounds, an assist and a steal for Wheaton, while junior forward Nasha Arnold (North Reading, Mass.) recorded a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds to go with three steals and an assist. Senior guard Abby Fernandes (Assonet, Mass.) contributed with 11 points, three rebounds, three steals and a trio of assists and junior guard Kiki Walters (Fleetwood, Pa.) netted 10 points, pulled down five rebounds, came up with four steals and handed out an assist.
Senior guard Emerson Cherry (Sturbridge, Mass.) was 3-4 from the floor, including 2-3 from three-point range to back a 12-point effort in addition to grabbing four rebounds and dishing for an assist. Junior guard Lauren Dunn (Hanson, Mass.) chipped in with 12 points, three rebounds and a pair of steals and senior guard Kylie McCarthy (Beverly, Mass.) led all playmakers with seven assists and added two points, three boards and a pair of thefts.
The Lyons never trailed in the game and ripped off the first nine points of the evening, including four from Fernandes, through the first three and a half minutes of play. Sophomore guard Lauren Morse (Holyoke, Mass.) canned a three-pointer to pull the visitors within 13-7 with 3:55 showing on the first quarter clock, but Wheaton reeled off 10 unanswered points, including six from Minos and four from sophomore guard Mary McClintock (Essex Junction, Vt.), to take its largest lead of the night at 23-7 to end the quarter.
Arnold completed a three-point play with a free throw to maintain a seemingly comfortable 28-13 advantage for the Lyons with 5:29 remaining in the second period. Minos later drilled a trifecta to restore the home team's double-digit cushion at 31-20 with 2:25 to go before the end of the half.
The Colonels chipped away at their host's lead and closed out the quarter with an 11-2 burst, including a three-pointer at the buzzer from Cherry, to make it a two-point game at the intermission (33-31). Cherry contributed to the run with six points for Curry.
Despite the flurry to end the half, the Colonels were unable to carry their momentum into the second half. Wheaton bolted out of the break with a 12-2 stretch, buoyed by six points from Minos, to take a 45-33 margin with 5:19 remaining in the quarter.
Fernandes made a fast-break layup off a turnover later in the period to bump the Lyons' advantage to a second-half high of 13 at 48-35 with 2:15 to play in the quarter. Much like the end of the second quarter, Curry didn't rest, scoring the final seven points of the half, including another buzzer-beating trey to cut the margin to 48-42. Dunn hit the three-ball to give her five of those quarter-ending points for the Colonels.
Arnold sank another free throw to cap a three-point play and maintain a 51-44 lead for Wheaton with 6:54 to go in the quarter. Curry scored the next four points to slice the margin to 51-48 with 4:55 showing in the quarter, but it was as close as it would get for the remainder of the contest.
Walters put the game on ice for the Lyons with a pair of free throws coming with 24 ticks left in the game to give them a 62-54 lead.
Wheaton returns to the court on Saturday, November 16 when it travels to Gorham, Maine to take on University of Southern Maine at 2:00 p.m., while the Colonels host University of Massachusetts Boston in their home opener on the same day at 6:00 p.m.
