The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Marshall
Women's Basketball Drops 67-50 Contest To Marshall
2/20/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 20, 2009
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A record crowd of 5,588 packed into Bartow Arena on Friday evening as the UAB women's basketball team fell to the Marshall Thundering Herd, 67-50. Marshall had five players score in double figures on the night, led by Chantelle Handy with 14. Britney Jones paced the Blazers with 15 points.
The 5,588 in attendance broke the previous UAB women's basketball home attendance record of 2,459, set on March 3, 1991 against Western Kentucky. The game versus Marshall was designated as UAB's Pink Zone game, an initiative by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) to raise breast cancer awareness.
UAB's record falls to 10-16 overall and 5-8 in Conference USA. Marshall improves to 13-13 overall, including a 6-7 mark in league play.
Marshall got up on UAB early, taking an eight-point lead at the 5:15 mark, 19-11, on a jumper by Handy. The Blazers cut their deficit to two late in the opening half and went into halftime down a pair, 26-24.
The Thundering Herd came out on fire in the second half, shooting 61.1 percent in the second 20 minutes to take a double-digit lead and grab a 67-50 win over UAB.
"We didn't execute very well offensively tonight," said UAB head coach Audra Smith. "Marshall came in and executed its game plan and we didn't. We also didn't attack the boards hard. We continue to get outrebounded and that continues to hurt us in games."
The Blazers couldn't hit the mark against Marshall, sinking just 25.0 percent of their shots overall, including 28.6 percent from beyond the arc. One category that was positive was from the free throw line, where UAB went 16-of-20 (80.0 percent).
Jones' 15 points came on 5-of-17 shooting, including 3-of-7 from three-point range. Jones also added three rebounds, one assist, one block and a game-high five steals.
Sophomore guard Amanda Peterson recorded 14 points for UAB, led by a pair of treys and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. Junior forward Tamika Dukes was the third Blazer in double digits with 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting and 4-of-4 from the free throw line, while also grabbing six boards and blocking two shots.
Marshall shot 42.6 percent overall and went 3-of-4 (75.0 percent) from beyond the arc. The Thundering Herd made 33 trips to the free throw line, sinking 24 of their attempts (72.7 percent).
Joining Handy in double digits were Alix Barnette and Keona Brooks with 11 points each, followed by Tania Walters and Alyssa Hammond with 10 points apiece. Forward Tynikki Crook tallied eight points for the Thundering Herd, along with eight rebounds.
UAB will be back in action on Sunday when it plays host to East Carolina at 2 p.m. CT. It will mark the final home game for the Blazers this season, and the last game in Bartow Arena for UAB seniors Brianna Berry and Britney Jones.
