Women's Basketball Falls to No. 10 DePaul, 69-56

Monique Blake

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – The Seton Hall women’s basketball team went scoreless during a crucial three-minute stretch in the second half, which allowed DePaul to pull away for a 69-56 win at Walsh Gym on Saturday afternoon. The Pirates trailed by just six with 5:58 to play, but the Blue Demons scored eight straight points to pull away for the win. The loss drops SHU to 6-11 overall and 3-3 in the BIG EAST, while DePaul improves to 17-2 and 4-2.

The Pirates trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half, but managed to hang around and a three-pointer by junior Heta Korpivaara (Espoo, Finland) at the 5:58 mark capped a 13-6 run and drew SHU within 55-49. SHU got the ball back after a DePaul turnover, but the Blue Demons forced two straight turnovers in the Pirates’ backcourt and Jenna Rubino and Khara Smith converted consecutive layups to stretch the lead back to 59-49. SHU could not get any closer, as DePaul converted eight foul shots down the stretch for the final margin.

DePaul held an eight-point lead at halftime, but came out in the second half and quickly stretched the lead to 18, thanks to a 12-2 run after Claudette Towers hit a three at the 16:09 mark to make it 47-29. The Pirates responded by cutting the deficit to 47-36 after freshman Shantel Brown (Lakewood, N.J.) hit two layups and freshman Brittney Messina (Massapequa, N.Y.) hit a three-pointer at the 14:33 mark. After DePaul went back up 51-38 on a layup by Caprice Smith, SHU junior Monique Blake (Union, N.J.) followed with a layup to kickstart the run that drew the Pirates within six after Korpivaara hit her three-pointer at 5:58.

Seton Hall shot 38.3 percent for the game and was led by Blake’s 13 points. Brown and Korpivaara each chipped in with 10 points, with Brown adding five assists. The difference in the game came on the glass, as DePaul held a 48-30 advantage. Erin Carney led the Blue Demons with 11 boards. Khara Smith and Allie Quigley of DePaul led all scorers with 18 points. Jenna Rubino chipped in with 17 points.

The Pirates jumped out to a 12-9 lead in the first half after Messina sank a three-pointer, but the Blue Demons came back with a 18-2 lead. DePaul took the lead for good on a layup by Ciara Johnson to make it 13-12, and Rubino followed with a three-pointer to increase the cushion. Smith’s layup with 6:02 left gave DePaul a 30-18 lead, its largest of the half. The Pirates managed to cut the lead after Jadis Rhodin (Lakehurst, N.J.) hit a three and Noteisha Womack (Fort Washington, Md.) followed with a jumper to make it 30-23 at the 1:49 mark. The teams traded baskets over the next three possessions, and Messina hit a layup to make it 35-27 going into halftime.

The Pirates return to action on Wednesday, January 25, when they host Syracuse at Walsh Gym in a 7:00 p.m. game.

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