Women's College Basketball
Rider University 78, Towson University 72

LAWRENCEVILLE—The Rider University women's basketball team opened the 2015-16 season with a 78-72 non-conference win over Towson University on Saturday afternoon in Alumni Gymnasium.

“Everyone had their moments,” said head coach Lynn Milligan.  “It is a buzz word but it really was a team win.  If you look across the stat sheet and see all the different players involved in the runs that got us back in the game, we want to bottle that effort and build from there.”

For Rider (1-0), junior Robin Perkins (Willingboro/Trenton Catholic) had 18 points with junior Yeliz Dogan (Ismir, Turkey) adding 15 points, nine rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal in 29 minutes of action.

“Yeliz is the kind of player we look to bring into the program,” Milligan said.  “She has that 'blue collar' workman like effort.  I told her that I just need 'you to be you' and just play and she did that.  She just played her game and she is still adjusting having all new teammates to work with.  She listens to her teammates, watches film and is learning and you saw the result of that today.”

“We stuck together,” said Perkins.  “Everyone was positive the whole time and I think that was the key.”

Leading 57-54, Rider went on an 8-0 run, five points by sophomore Kamila Hoskova (Czech Republic) as the Broncs pushed the lead to 65-54 with 8:02 left in the game.

One of four players scoring in double-digits, Hoskova finished with 13 points on five for seven shooting in 20 minutes off the bench.

After Towson (0-1) got to within 72-66 with 1:13 remaining, Rider put the game away with six free throws in the final minute, led by three free throws from senior Manon Pellet (Marseille, France).  In 28 minutes of play, Pellet finished with six points, six assists, three rebounds and three steals.

“We needed some time to adjust and play together,” Pellet said about the opener.  “The exhibitions helped us and we watched a lot of film.  Today, it was all about the team chemistry.”

Trailing 44-43 with 5:52 left in the third quarter, Rider used a 5-0 run, three points by freshman Lexi Posset (Pittsburgh, Pa./Beaver Area) to take a 48-44 lead with 4:23 left in the third period, the eighth and final lead change of the game.  Posset finished with those three points in seven minutes off the bench.

Trailing 40-35, Rider used an 8-0 run, four points by Dogan and two points each by Perkins and junior Julia Duggan (Marmora/Ocean City) to take a 43-40 lead with 6:07 left in the third quarter.  Duggan finished with her fifth career 'double-double', recording 13 points and 10 rebounds, including four on the offensive glass.

Dogan had eight of her 15 points in the third quarter but did not play in the final quarter.  “We can do a lot of different things,” Milligan said.  “We went four guards because of what Towson was doing and the defense was amped up and we just rode it out.  It wasn't by design that Yeliz didn't get back in.  We went small in the final quarter and started getting baskets in transition.”

Towson opened the first quarter shooting 60 percent from the field with the Tigers making four three-pointers, building a 24-15 lead after the opening 10 minutes of play.

“Towson is a tough team,” Milligan said.  “I thought we adjusted well to some of the things they were doing to us.”

Trailing 34-25 in the second quarter, Rider went on a 7-0 run, four points by Duggan to get to within 34-32 and a three-pointer by Perkins with six seconds left before intermission got the Broncs to within 36-35 heading into the locker room.

Rider shot 44 percent (28-64) from the field, making nine three-pointers.  Towson shot 26-66 (39 percent) and made 12 shots from long distance.

Rider attempted 26 free throws (making 13) as the Tigers committed 28 fouls.

“That's lessons learned,” said Milligan about the free throws.  “That's getting in the gym and preparing mentally to finish games and we obviously need to work on that area.  It's tough to draw fouls against the zone but I thought we did a good job recognizing when the penetration was there and not trying to force the action.”

Over 800 fans attended the game as Rider University hosted an admissions open house.

“It felt good playing in front of the home crowd,” Milligan said.  “We gave them a good show.  We haven't a true home opener in a while (2011-12, 64-56 win against Lafayette) so this feels special.  The crowd was fantastic.  Our goal is get them in the stands, put on a good show and then we hope they come back.  If they don't after what they saw today, then they are missing out.  Just a great atmosphere and there was great energy.”

Former rivals in the East Coast Conference, this is Rider's ninth win in 25 tries against Towson and the Broncs snapped a four-game losing streak to the Tigers.  Towson defeated Rider 53-51 in the second round of the Preseason WNIT last season.  The teams last met in Lawrenceville on December 2, 2007 when the Tigers won 74-68.

This is Rider's first season opening win since 2012 when the Broncs won at Stony Brook.

Prior to the game, in conjunction with the efforts of the NCAA, Rider held a moment of silence for the victims of the terror in France on Friday night, an event that hit close to home for Pellet who hails from France.

“It was definitely on my mind,” said Pellet who shared that her family and friends were safe.  “I kind of had to regroup before the game.  I watched the news last night but I had to go to bed early and keep it out of my mind.  It's a horrible incident and I worked hard to stay focused for the game.  It was difficult.  I feel lucky because there are a lot of victims and my thoughts go to them.”

Rider travels to St. Francis Brooklyn on Wednesday, November 18 for a non-conference game at 7pm.  That game will be heard on 107.7 FM The Bronc and on the web at 1077thebronc.com and GoBroncs.com.

-RU-