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University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
3-21,1-11Atlantic 10
Duquesne
14-9,9-3Atlantic 10
Women’s Basketball Defeated By Duquesne, 79-62
February 07, 2024 | Women's Basketball
Alexsia Rose led Massachusetts with a career-high 23-point performance.
AMHERST, Mass.– University of Massachusetts women's basketball fell to Duquesne, 79-62 on Wednesday night at the Mullins Center.
Alexsia Rose completed a career-high performance, tallying 23 points and five assists on the evening. The senior guard went 7-for-18 from the field, along with an impressive 3-for-4 from beyond the arc and posting 85.7% from the line. The contest marks Rose's fourth consecutive game in double figures.
Stefanie Kulesza trailed behind with 10 points, while leading the team in rebounds with six of the team's 28 of the night. Kristin Williams and Lily Taulelei collected seven points apiece, with Williams adding three assists to her scoresheet.
The Minutewomen lit the scoreboard first, sparked by a second-chance layup from Bre Bellamy at 8:39. UMass quickly went 4-of-4 from the field to lend a tight 10-6 advantage halfway through the first quarter. Duquesne answered back with a 10-0 run, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers for a 14-10 game at the 4:42 media timeout. The lead trades continued, with UMass adding an 8-0 run of their own to make a 18-16 score as the clock read 1:22. The back-and-forth action continued, after both teams exchanged three-pointers as the final seconds of the quarter drained.
Entering the second quarter, the game held a dead-locked 21-21 score. After Duquesne mounted an eight-point advantage to continue play, Chinenye Odenigbo's capitalized on the Dukes' tenth turnover to sink a layup at 4:08. Despite Rose's five-point effort, the Dukes' ended the half on a 7-0 run; the score reading 39-28 heading into the break.
Rose's contributions continued in the third, notching UMass' first basket and assist of the second half. Duquesne steadily added to their lead as the third quarter progressed, holding a 13-point edge at the 4:55 media timeout. Rose's scoring prowess continued nonetheless, adding her second three-pointer of the evening at 4:44 to put the Minutewomen within 10 points of the Dukes, 50-40. The senior guard then emerged as the highest scorer (13 points, 5 assists) amongst both teams.
After going 7-of-7 from the field goal-range to close the third quarter, Duquesne claimed a 62-43 lead heading into the final ten minutes of play. For the second consecutive quarter, Rose kicked off the scoring after notching a five-point run of her own, elapsing at 8:15. The Dukes answered back with a 6-0 uncontested run, to which Rose's jumper snapped at 6:11. The tandem of Taulelei and Dallas Pierce thereafter combined to go three-of-three from the field, but their contributions fell short, the final buzzer sounding to the score, 79-62.
The Minutewomen will matchup in the Bronx against Fordham on Saturday at 2 p.m. UMass then returns to the Mullins Center for its Play4Kay game on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. against Rhode Island.
