Columbia Outlasts Sacred Heart, 73-69; Brooke Kelly Nets a Career-High 29 in the loss
12/29/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 29, 2002
NEW YORK, NY (December 29, 2002) - The Sacred Heart University Pioneers suffered their second-straight loss Sunday afternoon, falling to the Columbia University Lions, 73-69, in New York. Trailing 33-32 at the half, the Pioneers came flying out of the gates in the second half, building as much as a 10-point lead. The Lions, led by Sue Altman's 28 points off the bench, refused to go away and clawed all the way back to take the lead for good with 20 seconds to play.
With Sacred Heart holding a 64-61 lead with 3:34 to play, Altman took over. The junior guard rattled off eight straight points to tie the score at 67-67, and cutting to the hoop with 49 seconds on the clock, banked home a lay-up to give the Lions their first lead of the second half. Pioneer senior Brooke Kelly (Medford, NJ) had the answer, putting home the final two of her career-high 29 points to knot the game at 69-69. Altman, however, wasn't finished as she drew a foul with 20 ticks left and promptly knocked down her free throws to put Columbia in the lead for good. SHU would get one more look, as freshman Nicolle Rubino (Port Jefferson Station, NY) three-point shot was off and Kelly couldn't answer with her put back.
Altman finished with a team-high 28 points on nine-of-17 shooting from the field and five-of-seven from behind the three-point arc. The Lions shot 51.0% (25-49) on the day, the second-straight game the Pioneers have allowed a team to shot over fifty percent from the field. Columbia center Edytte Kay chipped in with 13 points and six rebounds in the win.
Kelly put together a phenomenal effort, hitting on 11-of-19 shots and six-of-seven from the free throw line on her way to a 29 point afternoon. Despite being outrebounded, 40-26, as a team, the senior co-captain managed to pull down a game-high eight boards. Rubino continued her solid play, scoring 14 points in the loss. Sophomore Allie Bagnell (Newtown, PA) put together one of her best efforts in a Pioneer uniform, scoring a career-high 13 points while dishing five assists and making three steals.
SHU will be looking to rebound as they play host to the Brown University Bears on Thursday, January 3rd at 7:30 pm in the William H. Pitt Center.
