Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Iona
Bison Overcome Slow First Half for 86-76 Win at Iona
1/6/2004 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 6, 2004
NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - Bucknell senior Desire Almind continued her impressive play, scoring 29 points and pulling down a career-high 20 rebounds to lead the Bison women's basketball team to an 86-76 win at Iona on Tuesday, January 5. It was BU's second win in as many days.
The Gaels raced out of the gates on a mission, getting several transition and back-door baskets to jump out to a 19-9 lead at the 14:48 mark. Michelle Fahy contributed 12 of her 20 first half points, and the host team did not miss a shot in eight attempts, during that span. Iona pushed it to as many as 14 in the next 2:46, and maintained the double-digit lead for the next three minutes before an Almind jumper cut it to eight, 30-22, with 8:41 to play.
A patient Bison team slowly began to chip away at the lead, and the Gaels cooled off from the field, to allow Bucknell to get within five on a Lindsey Hollobaugh three-pointer with 5:34 until the break. The Gaels went ahead by nine again behind three-pointers from Toni Horvath and Meg Abele, but BU outscored the hosts 10-3 over the final 4:14 of the half to enter the locker room trailing by only two, 46-44.
Both teams were impressive from the field in the opening half, with Bucknell hitting .516 (16-31) and Iona connecting on .541 (20-37) of its shots.
The Orange and Blue opened the second half on a 12-5 run behind four points from junior Lillian Drumgold, a jumper from senior Kristin Valdner, and a three-pointer each from Hollobaugh and sophomore Lindsey Geosits. Iona then mounted a 9-2 run of its own behind four from Regan Pettijohn and five from Fahy to take a brief 60-58 lead with 14:19 to play.
After a Geosits layup tied the contest at 60-60, the Orange and Blue put together an impressive 18-4 run, holding Iona without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes. The surge proved to be too much to overcome for the Gaels, who could only get as close as six in the final 35 seconds.
Almind shot 12-of-16 from the floor on the way to her second-straight 20-point game. Also in double-figures for the Bison were Hollobaugh with 19, Geosits with a career-best 17 and Drumgold with a career-high 11.
Fahy led all scorers with 34 points.
