Box Score Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – Down 16 in the beginning of the final quarter, the Lynn University women's basketball team appeared out of contention against host Nova Southeastern on Saturday afternoon. The Fighting Knights clawed back down to the final buzzer, but suffered a 75-71 defeat to the Sharks in Sunshine State Conference action.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Nova Southeastern 75, Lynn 71
Records: Nova Southeastern (7-2, 4-1 SSC), Lynn (4-4, 1-3 SSC)
Location: NSU Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
All-time Series: NSU leads 21-14
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
- First Quarter | The Fighting Knights rushed out to a 7-1 lead as Brekia Henderson opened up the scoring with a trey before Marta Oledzka converted a pair of inside attempts. The Sharks utilized strong shooting from both beyond the arc and at the free-throw line to knot the score up at nine before executing an 8-0 run to lead Lynn 21-15 after one quarter of play.
- Second Quarter | Paola Vazquez Concepcion knocked down her second triple of the day at the start of the second. The sides traded buckets until the Sharks hit a three in the final seconds to go into the locker room up six, 39-33. NSU was 5-of-7 from long range at the half.
- Third Quarter | Nova opened up its lead to as many as 13 halfway through the quarter. Good ball movement from Lynn kept the Sharks from pulling away, but the Fighting Knights trailed heading into the fourth, 66-53. Jaylen Snipes dished out four of her game-high seven assists in the period.
- Fourth Quarter | Megan Piggot opened up the fourth-quarter scoring with her fifth three-pointer of the game, giving Nova its largest lead of the day at 16. The Blue and White kept chipping away until an Oledzka jumper brought the deficit to six with 1:28 remaining. Nova wouldn't find the bottom of the net again down the stretch, but a pair of missed three-pointers doomed Lynn's comeback bid. Lynn outscored Nova 19-8 in the final stanza.
STATS OF THE GAME:
- Vazquez Concepcion led the way offensively with 20 points, marking her third 20-plus effort in the last four games. She rounded out the stat sheet with three steals, two boards and a career-high four assists.
- Henderson finished with a career-high 16 points on efficient shooting, going 6-for-10 from the field, 3-of-5 from beyond the arc and knocking down her only free-throw attempt. Her three triples is also a career-best.
- Oledzka neared a double-double with 10 points and a team-high seven boards. Mariah Penascino recorded her first double-digit performance in the Blue and White, finishing with 10 points (4-of-7 FG), four rebounds, three assists and a steal.
- Lynn outshot the Sharks from the field but NSU finished 10-of-20 from long range.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- Lynn's 71 points is its most in a conference game this season.
- Vazquez Concepcion played all but one minute in the contest.
- Henderson and Vazquez Concepcion were the only Fighting Knights to connect from downtown. Only one other player had any attempts for Lynn.
- NSU is tied at the top of the conference with four league victories on the season.
UP NEXT:
Lynn returns home next weekend for its annual Boca Raton Holiday Classic. The Fighting Knights will first host Miles College on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m.
