DeLand, Fla. - The Stetson women's basketball team
(11-3) shot 50 percent from three-point territory (9-18) to make up for a low
scoring output inside the arc and claimed a 52-37 victory over Florida Atlantic
in the championship game of the Hatter Classic at the Edmunds Center on
Wednesday. Junior guard Shanasa Sanders (Jacksonville,
Fla.) was named tournament Most Valuable
Player while junior guard Victoria McGowan (Inkster, Mich.)
led all scorers with 11 points.
Points were at a premium all afternoon, especially in the
first half. The Hatters knocked down five of eight three-pointers in the first
period but were just 3-23 from two-point territory while the Owls only managed
to sink one of 10 three-point attempts before halftime. Stetson led 22-15 at
the break and only trailed once in the entire game (1-0 in the first minute).
Down by as many as 10 in the first half, FAU put some
pressure on Stetson early in the second half with a quick 4-0 burst that drew
the visitors within 24-21 with 18:25 to go. Freshman guard Jama Sharp (Mooresville, Ind.)
immediately answered for the Hatters with a three-pointer from the corner on
the other end to start a 6-0 spurt; Stetson never led by less than seven points
again and coasted away to a 15-point victory.
Stetson has now won five straight games overall (six of its
last seven) and 10 in a row at the Edmunds
Center dating back to
last February. The last three victories have all been by exactly 15 points and
all of them have been by 10 points or more. Stetson's 52 points on the day
represent a season low and are its lowest total in a win since defeating Mercer
at the Edmunds Center 49-46 on February 20, 2003.
Defensively, the 37 points for FAU are the sixth-lowest total by a Hatter
opponent in program history.
McGowan scored 11 points to lead all scorers while Sanders
flirted with a double-double in finishing with nine points and a career-high 12
rebounds plus a team-high three assists. Freshman forward Cherisse Burris (Blue Springs, Mo.)
notched eight points and eight rebounds, a scoring total also equaled by Sharp
and sophomore forward Sasha Sims (Fayetteville,
Ga.).
No FAU player scored in double figures with Chenise Miller's
eight points and 12 rebounds leading the way for the Owls. Tough Hatters
defense held Florida Atlantic to 27.1 percent shooting (13-48); however the
Owls hurt themselves as well by missing 11 of 18 free throw attempts, negating
their 18-2 advantage in free throw attempts.
"I thought we played a great game," Head Coach Lynn Bria said. "We rebounded well and got some stops. We struggled offensively but I thought we were taking good shots that just didn't go in. We were able to settle down in the 2nd half and increased our scoring output. It will be good to have some days off before getting back into conference play."
Besides Sanders and McGowan, the All-Tournament Team featured FAU's Miller, Bethune-Cookman's Jasmine Elum and Campbell's Jazmine Cooper. Campbell defeated B-CU 62-46 in the other game today; Stetson had beaten Campbell 70-55 yesterday and FAU 71-70 over B-CU in triple overtime as the Hatters won the tourney with a 2-0 record.
The Hatters are off until January 2, 2012 after setting a
program record for pre-New Year's wins. With the non-conference slate
concluded, Stetson now turns its attention to the remainder of the Atlantic Sun
Conference slate; at 2-0 in the league, the Hatters resume at 4:45 pm January 2
at Kennesaw State. A-Sun.TV will carry the contest
with Live Stats linked at GoHatters.com.
FACEBOOK - Stetson Athletics (facebook.com/stetsonhatters);
TWITTER - @StetsonSID (twitter.com/stetsonsid)
