Box Score Yesterday was Black Friday around the country.
Today (Nov. 27) was Green Light Saturday at Ashland University's Kates Gymnasium.
Shooting from long range with no fear of misfiring, the AU women's basketball team shot down Urbana, 83-53 on the first day of the Holiday Inn Express Classic. The win gives the Eagles a 4-0 record. This was AU's largest margin of victory this season. It was the second consecutive game the Eagles held a team to 53 points and the third consecutive game Ashland limited a team to 53 points or less. The Eagles are permitting 55.5 ppg. The last time AU had a stretch like this defensively was in 1982-83 when in three consecutive games the Eagles allowed 33, 47 and 58 points.
This game, though, was about AU's ability to light up the scoreboard from three-point distance. In the first half, when the Eagles built a 40-28 advantage, they connected on six-of-10 (60 percent) three-point shots. For the game, AU checked in at 52.9 percent (nine-of-17) from behind the stripe. That's a season-best percentage and the second time this season AU has finished at 50 percent or better from three-point range.
With that kind of shooting going on, AU players had no second thoughts about pulling the trigger. Sophomore guard Kaci Finfrock (West Milton, Ohio/Milton-Union) and junior guard Jena Stutzman (Berlin, Ohio/Kent State) were both three-for-six from three-point distance and senior forward Liz Tyler (Monroeville, Ohio) was two-for-two. Finfrock scored a career-high 15 points, going six-for-11 overall. Stutzman had 13 points.
AU's leading scorer was sophomore forward Daiva Gerbec (Dublin, Ohio/Bishop Watterson), who produced her second double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Gerbec had nine points and nine rebounds in the first half and Stutzman also had nine points in the first 20 minutes.
The first half saw the Eagles put on their best display of ball movement this season. Ashland had 14 field goals and 13 came off of assists. Urbana (1-2) had no answer for a team with multiple options on offense and the ability to constantly find the open player. AU ended the game with seven players scoring six points or more and four players with three or more assists. The leader in that department was senior guard Rachel Poorman (Zanesville, Ohio/Maysville) with five assists.
The Eagles made sure that the Blue Streaks would not entertain any thoughts of a comeback. Just 3:08 into the second half, Ashland was in front, 51-30 after a layup by Finfrock. The Eagles hit five of their first seven shots in the second half.
Ashland ended the game with 10 steals and made 10-of-12 free throw attempts (83.3 percent). AU outrebounded Urbana, 49-29. The Eagles have lost the battle on the boards once this season. That came last Tuesday at Walsh.
Center Ashley Falknor led Urbana with 12 points. She was the only Urbana player to reach double digits.
On Sunday (Nov. 28, 3 p.m.), the Eagles will play Wheeling Jesuit on the second day of the Classic. In Saturday's first game, Hillsdale upended the Cardinals, 62-50. Sunday's first game will begin at 1 p.m. and pits Hillsdale against Urbana.
AU
WBB/ALK
