Dec. 6, 2006
Box Score in PDF Format
Final Stats
BALTIMORE, Md. - Margaret Knap (Sr., Chicago, Ill.) scored 16 of her career-high 22 points in the second half as the Navy women's basketball team posted a 74-56 victory over UMBC, Wednesday night at the RAC Arena in Baltimore.
After Navy (3-6) took a 34-33 lead over the Retrievers (3-5) at intermission, the lead see-sawed back and forth over the opening few minutes of the second half before the Mids began to take control of the game.
UMBC held a 37-36 advantage when the Mids went on a 12-3 run to take a 48-40 lead with 14:18 left in the game. Knap drilled a three-pointer early in the run to give Navy a 43-38 lead, then added a pair of free throws to again boost the Navy advantage back to five points at 45-40. The sprint was capped off by a three-pointer from Whitney Davidson (So., New Oxford, Pa.).
The Retrievers would close to within four points at 48-44, but a layup and foul shot by Lindi Conner (Jr., Kingman, Kan.) and another triple from Knap on back-to-back Navy possessions gave the Mids a 54-44 lead with 12:17 left in the game.
Once Navy took a 59-49 lead with 9:36 left to play, the Mids held UMBC to just one field goal over the remainder of the game.
"We played very smart offensively tonight," said Navy head coach Tom Marryott. "We were aggressive, which led us to the free throw line, and once there we were able to convert our attempts. We also had very good balance in our scoring.
"We were also very good on defense. We made UMBC move the ball around and we limited them to one shot on most of their possessions. This is a difficult offense to defend due to all of their back cuts and screens, so we had to remain patient."
After taking just four free throw attempts during the first half, while UMBC shot 16 free throws during the opening 20 minutes, Navy made 19 trips to the foul line in the second half and converted 16 of those attempts.
Navy also held a 43-28 advantage on the glass in the game and limited the Retrievers to seven offensive boards over the course of the 40 minutes. The Mids did turn the ball over 22 times in the game, but only eight times after halftime.
Knap, who also tied a career-best effort with eight rebounds, led a trio of Mids who scored in double figures. Joining her were Carly Meyer (Sr., Orlando, Fla.), who recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards, and Kate Hobbs (Sr., Wexford, Pa.), who contributed 12 points and seven rebounds.
Navy's bench had an all-around great game tonight. In addition to Knap, and among others, Conner set career highs with seven points and five rebounds, and Kelly Altschul (Fr., Highland Village, Texas) scored four points and hauled in six boards in just 13 minutes of playing time.
"I was very proud of how our team handled the foul trouble of Kate and Carly," said Marryott. "Even in their absence, we remained focused and efficient on both ends of the floor."
Navy will take some time off for semester exams before returning to competition with games Dec. 20 at North Carolina A&T and two days later at Charleston Southern.
