Tulane University
19-5, 10-3
UCF
7-17, 3-10
WBB Completes Series Sweep of UCF with 66-55 Win
Feb 10, 2015 | Women's Basketball
NEW ORLEANS - The Tulane women's basketball team (19-5, 10-3), who led for just 32 seconds in their 71-70 win at UCF on Jan. 13, led the entire 40 minutes on Tuesday against the Knights (7-17, 3-10), picking up their third straight conference win via a 66-55 victory inside Devlin Fieldhouse. Kolby Morgan led a trio of Wave players in double figures with a 16-point performance.
"I thought it was a hard fought game," Tulane head coach Lisa Stockton said. "Central Florida did a great job getting opportunities on the board. Free throws were probably the main key for our second half and keeping our lead."
An early 7-0 run on a 6-for-9 start from the field jumped Tulane out to a 15-6 advantage. Three times in the half UCF cut the deficit to one possession but Morgan and Danielle Blagg responded each time as the duo finished the period with 10 points each and gave the Wave a 35-29 halftime lead.
The Olive and Blue then connected on just five field goals in the second half, four of which came from beyond the arc. Yet, Tulane maintained their lead by getting to the free throw line early and often, reaching the bonus at the 11:03 mark and finishing the half 17-for-21 from the charity stripe.
Jamie Kaplan was clutch down the stretch, scoring 11 of her season high tying 14 points in the final five minutes, including eight straight free throws, tying her career high with a 9-for-10 night on the line.
"I thought we came out in the second half and didn't have the best shot selection," Stockton added. "When we got some good shots, some of them didn't roll in. We were pretty out of sync offensively tonight but the free throw line really saved us, and our three point percentage was pretty good."
Morgan registered her 17th double-digit scoring effort on the season, tying her career mark of five made three pointers (5-of-10), to go along with her team high six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Tulane shot 34.5 percent (19-55) from the field and 9-for-21 (tied season high) from three point range, while holding its second straight opponent to under 25 percent (4-16) from beyond the arc. The Wave also won their fourth straight against UCF.
Up next, Tulane heads to the northeast for an extended road trip that starts with newly ranked No. 1 UConn on Saturday, Feb. 14 at 3 p.m. CT, followed by Temple on Tuesday, Feb. 17, at 6 p.m.
