Nov. 19, 2010

Final Stats

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Villanova made only two more field goals than the Navy women's basketball team did, but the Wildcats outscored the Midshipmen 33-0 from behind the three-point line to help them to a 54-41 victory Friday night at Alumni Hall in Annapolis.

"I think you have to give all of the credit to Villanova tonight," said Navy head coach Stefanie Pemper. "Their offense is unlike anything else we will see this year. It really wore us down on defense and that had an impact on the offense end of the floor for us. Plus, they are very long and athletic and were able to take away our outside game. I felt we were able to get some good shots out there, but we couldn't get anything to fall."

Both teams were an identical 10-of-25 from the floor in the first half, but Villanova (2-1) made 8-of-18 attempts from outside of the three-point line while Navy (2-1) was 0-3 from beyond the arc during the opening 20 minutes of play. That allowed the Wildcats to open a 29-23 lead over the Mids at halftime.

The second half opened with Villanova's Lindsay Kimmel sinking a three-point shot just 10 seconds into the half to extend the margin to nine points (32-23). After the teams traded baskets, Navy scored the ensuing eight points to close to within one point of Villanova at 34-33 with 14:41 left in the game. Jade Geif (Fr., Lakeview, Minn.) started the 8-0 run with a pair of free throws. Navy's next possession saw Angela Myers (Sr., San Antonio, Texas) make a pair of free throws of her own. After a Villanova missed shot, Geif made a shot from inside of the paint to pull the Mids to within three points. The Wildcats missed a pair of shots on their next possession, which led to Audrey Bauer (Fr., Lake Zurich, Ill.) making an inside shot of her own for the Mids.

Villanova stopped the Navy run with a three-point field goal by Sara Jones. It would soon be a three-point game again (39-36) when the Wildcats went on a 7-0 run of their own to extend the margin to double figures for the first time in the game at 46-36 with 4:32 showing on the clock. Navy closed to within seven points at 48-41 with 1:49 left to play, but Villanova was 8-of-8 from the foul line over the remainder of the contest to seal the victory.

Navy's previous low for three-point field goals made during the 65-game Stefanie Pemper era was two, which was tallied by the Mids in November of 2008. The last time the Mids were held without a three-point field goal made in any game was in February of 2008. Conversely, the 11 three-point field goals made by Villanova is tied for the highest total allowed by the Mids under Pemper and is tied for fourth place for the most allowed by the Mids in any game.

After both teams shot the ball well in the first half, neither team could carry that success over into the second half. The Mids were 6-of-25 (24.0%) from the field during the second half while the Wildcats were 8-of-28 (28.6%).

Despite the disparity from outside of the three-point line, Navy held advantages over Villanova in rebounds (38-33), free throws made (9-7) and free throws attempted (15-7). Additionally, the Mids turned the ball over 14 times in the game while forcing the Wildcats into 12 turnovers.

Myers led Navy in scoring with 13 points and in assists with four, while both she and Chey Arvin (So., Noblesville, Ind.) hauled in seven caroms in the game.

Leading all players in scoring on the night was Villanova's Megan Pearson with 15 points.

The Navy-Villanova game was the second of the day that was played as part of the Navy Classic. Game one featured Harvard posting an 84-76 victory over Oral Roberts. The tournament will conclude Saturday with Villanova playing Oral Roberts at 11 a.m. and Navy taking on Harvard at 8:30 p.m.