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University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
1-2
Maine
1-2
Team Effort Nets Minutewomen 68-60 Win Over Maine
November 19, 2014 | Women's Basketball
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AMHERST, Mass. - Kim Pierre-Louis, Rashida Timbilla and Kymber Hill each scored in double-figures as Massachusetts women's basketball secured a 68-60 victory over Maine during UMass' home opener at the Mullins Center on Wednesday evening. Pierre-Louis finished with a game-high 19 points while Timbilla scored 14 with six assists and five rebounds. Hill added 10 points and eight boards.
"Today's win was a great team effort," head coach Sharon Dawley said. "Kim Pierre-Louis was phenomenal - from earning steals to showing off her speed and strength. She did a great job overall. Rashida Timbilla played great defense and had the assists we needed. When she goes to the bench we feel it a little bit because she is invaluable to us on the court. Kymber Hill cleaned the game up on the boards for us."
Emily Mital and Alyx Stiff had seven points each while Cierra Dillard provided five points to go with five assists and a pair of steals. The Minutewomen shot 57.1 percent from the floor (24-of-42) and hit 16 of their 21 free throws (76.2 percent) to secure the win on the offensive end while a pesky defense created 17 Maine turnovers.
"We played a lot of people tonight and everyone contributed in one way or another," Dawley continued. "The freshmen grew up right before our eyes. They were nervous in last Friday's season-opener [at Western Michigan]. It was a different story on Sunday [at Central Michigan] and tonight they were confident in their third collegiate game."
Mikaela Gustafsson and Sigi Koizar notched 12 points apiece to pace the Black Bears.
Nine Minutewomen etched their names into the scoring column during the opening half when UMass earned a 32-25 advantage at the break through a balanced scoring effort.
Massachusetts (1-2 overall) turned a 13-9 deficit into a 21-13 lead via a 12-point run spanning four minutes, 54 seconds during the middle of the first stanza. Dillard drained a three-pointer at 14:01 to begin the streak before a Timbilla layup put UMass up 14-13 with 13:22 to go in the frame. Mital added a trey and Timbilla capped the run with a traditional three-point play at the 9:07 mark.
Stiff accounted for the final seven UMass points of the half to buoy the lead. After she grabbed a defensive board, the Las Vegas, Nevada, native nailed a jumper on the other end to put UMass up 27-20 with four minutes, 41 seconds left in the frame. Stiff added a pair of free throws to make it a 29-22 game and answered a Koizar three with a trey of her own to create the 32-25 halftime advantage. She finished the game 2-for-3 from the floor with a pair of made free throws.
The Minutewomen started the final frame with five consecutive points and grew their lead as large as 16 during the stanza. Hill converted a layup despite being fouled and hit the ensuing free throw for UMass' first double-digit advantage of the game, 35-25. Pierre-Louis added another traditional three-point score during the next trip down the floor to make it 38-25 with 18:29 left.
Maine (1-2) responded with two points in the paint and a triple to drop the visitor's deficit to eight, but Pierre-Louis answered with another traditional triple before Hill earned a layup to push it to 45-32 at the 15:08 mark.
The Black Bears were unable to get back within eight points of UMass until the final 90 seconds of the game.
Courtney Anderson nailed a three with 1:29 remaining to knock the Massachusetts advantage down to 65-57. However, Mital jumped the lead back to double-digits with her second three-pointer of the evening exactly 30 seconds later despite having a pair of Black Bears guarding her on the perimeter.
"Emily Mital did a great job coming off of the bench and hit a spectacular three that was the nail," Dawley said of Mital's late three-pointer. "We needed that one."
Maine went 23-for-59 on field goals (39.0 percent) and made 11 of their 36 three-point attempts (30.6 percent). However, they only hit three foul shots in seven attempts. Massachusetts drained four of its six treys.
Massachusetts hits the road again as the squad heads to North Texas (0-2) to face the Mean Green on Friday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m.
