Women's College Basketball
Rider University 57, Iona College 49
LAWRENCEVILLE?-In the Pink! On Think Pink day in Alumni Gym, senior Janele Henderson (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Loughlin) thrilled the almost 1,000 fans in attendance scoring 14 points with sophomore Ashley Anderson (East Orange) adding a ?double-double' with 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds as Rider defeated Iona in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game Sunday afternoon. “It was a battle,” said head coach Lynn Milligan. “It was a war of attrition.”
Trailing 44-43 with five minutes remaining in the game, Rider (7-17, 2-11 MAAC) went on a 7-0 run, four points by Anderson to take a 50-44 lead with three minutes left. The run marked the 11th and final lead change of the game, including the ninth of the second half.
Henderson, playing in her 100th career game, made four three-pointers playing all 40 minutes.
“Janele and I sat down and watched the film of the game at Saint Peter's from Friday (February 8) when she only made one field goal,” Milligan said. “We figured out what was a good look and what wasn't and the shots she took today were more in the flow of the offense.”
Anderson shot 75 percent from the field and added two steals before fouling out with 19 seconds left. Anderson played 25 minutes in the game.
“Ashley has been showing signs of having a game line this for the past several weeks,” Milligan said. “We were able to keep her in longer today and not only was she able to crash the boards for us, she was able to contribute to the offense. Ashley has embraced her role and realizes how important the things that she does are.”
“The coaches, especially assistant coach Rashana Barnes have been on me to focus on boxing out better,” said Anderson. “We did that as a team and were able to win the game.”
“Our post players really respect what coach Barnes has been able to teach them,” said Milligan. “She has been there and done that and when you get a result like today, it clicks and they realize that they have the ability to execute what we are teaching them.”
The Gaels entered play averaging 73 points per game and the Broncs held Iona to just 18 points in the second half. Leading by only two points, the Broncs defense held the Gaels without a field goal for the final 2:18 of the game.
“Iona is the second leading scoring team in the conference,” said Henderson. “We just played strong team defense. We had the mentality that everything had to be a stop.”
“Iona plays very hard defensively,” Milligan said. “Our kids rose to the occasion. We didn't out-score Iona today, we out defended them.” Rider caused 25 Gael turnovers with junior Shaunice Parker (Waldorf, Md./West Lake) leading the way with four steals. Parker also had seven points and 10 rebounds.
Iona (15-9, 9-4 MAAC) opened the game on a 6-0 run and held Rider to an 0-7 start from the field before three three-pointers by Henderson sparked an 11-0 run for the Broncs and Rider led 11-6 seven minutes into the game.
The Gaels responded with a 10-0 run to lead 16-11 with 10 minutes remaining in the opening period.
The team traded baskets the rest of the way and Iona led 31-28 at halftime.
Also for the Broncs, sophomore Amanda Sepulveda (Perth Amboy/Hun) had 13 points and five rebounds.
“Amanda kept us calm,” Milligan said. “We needed her to keep us focused so that we could break Iona's press and she did.”
The game drew 917 fans to Alumni Gym for Rider's annual Breast Cancer Awareness day. “The fans were a big help,” said Anderson. “I love having a big crowd. It gets me excited.”
“The crowd was really into it,” said Milligan. “It was an amazing atmosphere. The crowd was the sixth man for us today. I hope the fans that saw us today appreciate the hard work that the kids put in and come back for another game.”
The Broncs broke a three game losing streak and broke Iona's five game winning streak. The Gaels entered the game in second place in the MAAC.
Rider out-rebounded the Gaels 48-38, the second highest rebound total of the season and avenged a loss at Iona on January 6 by a score of 67-58.
“When we out-rebound teams, we tend to win,” Henderson said. “We knew we had focus, get rebounds and capitalize.”
The Broncs are now 6-8 at home this season and broke a six-game losing streak to Iona. The Gaels lead the all-time series 15-10.
Rider travels to Baltimore, Maryland on Friday for a MAAC game against Loyola at 7:00pm.
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