Tulane University
George Mason
![Junior Shelly Cayette scored in double figures for the second straight game as Tulane defeated George Mason on Sunday. [File photo by Michael Hebert]](https://images.sidearmdev.com/resize?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdxbhsrqyrr690.cloudfront.net%2Fsidearm.nextgen.sites%2Ftulanegreenwave.com%2Fimages%2F2004%2F11%2F21%2F84019.jpeg&height=300&type=webp)
Freshmen Lead Tulane Over George Mason, 62-56
Nov 21, 2004 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 21, 2004
FAIRFAX, Va. - Freshmen Alendra Brown and Jennifer Sands keyed Tulane's second-half comeback as the Green Wave defeated George Mason 62-56 Sunday at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va. Tulane improved to 1-1 on the season while George Mason fell in their season opener.
"We certainly came up here to sweep, but we'll go with a split," said Tulane head coach Lisa Stockton. "At this point in the season, it's about the team coming together and building confidence. This is a big, big win for us."
The Wave found a second-half spark in a trio of freshmen as redshirt Courtney Simmons joined Brown and Sands in coming off the bench to key the Tulane victory. Brown, a center from New Orleans' McMain High School, led the Wave with 12 points, including six in the second half, while adding six rebounds and committing just one turnover in 21 minutes.
She was joined in double figures by junior Shelly Cayette, who had her second straight double-figure game with 10 points. Senior Tymeka Moore, who played a team-high 36 minutes for the Green Wave, pulled down nine rebounds and had eight points.
"It was nice to see Shelly and Alendra playing so strong in the post," Stockton said. "And Tymeka Moore just does so much that people don't realize - shooting four-of-eight with nine rebounds. We really challenged Courtney to play in control and lead her team and I thought this was a very, very good game for her."
Down 43-37 with a little more than eight minutes left in the game, Tulane's Brown and D'Aundra Henry found Sands, a freshmen seeing her first action of the year, for open three pointers to tie the score at 43. Sands also put the Green Wave ahead to stay with a pair of free throws at the 3:21 mark after George Mason had taken a 50-49 lead on a three-pointer by Keyhana Wakefield.
Brown then extended the lead to 55-50 with back-to-back layups at the 3:05 and 2:21 marks before GMU's Tracy Ann Holness, who led the Patriots with 18 points, hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to two with 2:07 left. But Jami Montagnino hit a pair of free throws and Moore's jumper at the 1:37 mark gave Tulane an insurmountable 59-53 lead.
George Mason opened the second half with a 19-2 run to claim an 10-point lead at 41-31 with 10:43 left in the game before the Green Wave began to chip away. Tulane led 29-22 at the half as the Wave defense held George Mason to just eight first half field goals.
The Green Wave opened the contest with an 11-2 run as George Mason scored two points in the first eight minutes of the game. GMU continued to have shooting woes throughout the opening stanza as they shot just 28 percent for the frame (8-29) while the Green Wave hit 14 of 33 field goals for a 42 percent mark.
After committing 39 turnovers versus Howard Friday night, the Green Wave turned the ball over just 17 times Sunday.
Tulane plays its first home game of the season Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at Fogelman Arena as Jacksonville State comes to town. For ticket information, call 504-861-WAVE.
