Minutewomen Outlast New Hampshire, 67-65

AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts women's basketball withstood a late New Hampshire rally as the Minutewomen hung on for a 67-65 victory on Thursday night at the Mullins Center. It is UMass' fifth win in its last six games, improving the squad to 5-3 on the year, while UNH drops to 2-6.

Senior Hailey Leidel led the Minutewomen with 21 points on 6-of-13 shooting, with 11 points coming in the first half. Freshman Maeve Donnelly contributed heavily to the first half defensive effort, racking up three blocks before finishing with four on the night. Sophomore Destiney Philoxy racked up nine assists, resetting a career-high.

UMass started off the matchup on an 8-0 run, forcing a UNH timeout after Leidel drained a right-wing trey which moved her to No. 7 on the program's all-time scoring list. Early success with the press led to consecutive UNH turnovers sparking the run. Donnelly contributed three rebounds in the opening stanza and added a block.

Donnelly helped lead a second quarter in which the Maroon and White dominated the paint as the rookie was a perfect 3-of-3 from the field while Philoxy dished out four of her nine dimes. Off a missed jumper in the waning seconds before halftime, Donnelly grabbed the offensive board and put away a layup at the buzzer to swell the UMass lead at the break to 38-21.

The second half saw the Wildcats come back into the fold as UNH took advantage of turnovers to claw back. In the last four minutes of regulation the visitors cut down the Massachusetts lead to single digits and, with both teams in the bonus, exchanged free throws as the margin came down to two possessions and eventually a single point with four seconds left.

Leidel, who played in her 100th career game on Thursday, has amassed 1,483 career points and needs seven to tie UMass Hall of Fame member Jennifer Butler (1999-2003) with 1,490 at No. 6 on the program's career scoring list.

Overall, UMass shot 40% (24-of-60) from the field to 38.7% (24-of-62) for the Wildcats. The Minutewomen also grabbed the edge in total rebounds (40-33) and second chance points (15-8), but committed 22 turnovers despite the win.

The Minutewomen return to action on Sun., Dec. 8 at 2 p.m., inviting Holy Cross to the Mullins Center. Single game and season tickets, along with a variety of group ticket offerings, are on sale and can be purchased by visiting UMass Athletics Ticket Central or by calling (866) UMASS-TIX.

Follow UMass women's basketball on Twitter (@UMassWBB), Instagram (UMassWBB) and Facebook (UMass Women's Basketball) for the latest news and updates around the program.

Scoreboard

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Team Stats

Hailey Leidel

Maeve Donnelly

Vashnie Perry

Destiney Philoxy

Players Mentioned

Maeve Donnelly

Hailey Leidel

Destiney Philoxy

Players Mentioned

Maeve Donnelly

Hailey Leidel

Destiney Philoxy

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics