Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Manhattan
Klotz Posts Huge Double-Double in Bucknell's 61-56 Win at Manhattan
11/21/2015 6:51:00 PM | Women's Basketball
RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Sophomore guard Jacquie Klotz scored 33 points and pulled down 19 rebounds to lead Bucknell to a 56-51 win at Manhattan in non-conference women's basketball action Saturday at Draddy Gymnasium.
Klotz is the first Bucknell player to score at least 30 points in a game since Trisha Krewson scored exactly 30 in a win over Division III Lycoming in 2009. The huge game helped the Bison improve to 3-1 overall, their best start since the 2008-09 season. Klotz was 12-for-20 from the field and 9-for-10 at the foul line. Her rebounds included five offensive boards and 14 on the defensive end.
The Bison used a solid defensive effort, their usual advantage on the boards, and a 72-percent mark at the foul line to overcome some offensive struggles in the first half. They held the Jaspers to 34-percent shooting and finished with a 40-32 edge in rebounding. Junior forward Claire DeBoer led the defense with six steals, while adding 12 points. At the line, they converted 26 of their 36 attempts.
Bucknell, which opened with a 15-0 run against Binghamton on Wednesday, started the game with a big run again, jumping out to a 7-0 lead, which it eventually upped to 14-2. Klotz hit a jumper to give the Bison a 16-4 lead with 3:08 left in the quarter. That would be the team's last field goal of the first half, but they still managed to take a 24-20 advantage into the break.
DeBoer ended the Bison's stretch of 16:05 without a field goal with a 3-pointer that put her team up 27-24 with 7:03 left in the third quarter. Manhattan eventually took a 38-37 lead with a free throw by Morgan Graziano with 11 seconds left in the quarter, but junior Megan McGurk hit a free throw to tie it seven seconds later. That was the only time the Bison trailed in the game, and the only seven seconds they have trailed in the past two games.
Klotz scored on a layup to break a 43-43 tie with 4:33 to play in regulation. That was the start of a 12-4 run that helped Bucknell take an eight-point lead with just over one minute left on the clock. Klotz scored eight straight points during that stretch, while McGurk and sophomore Catherine Romaine added two points apiece. Manhattan wouldn't get closer than five the rest of the way.
“We knew this was a game that could come down to how well we handled the pressure, and we didn't handle it very well today,” said Bucknell head coach Aaron Roussell. “We kept talking with the players about staying with it because at some point there was going to be a run out there for us. We started the game on a great run and had that run in the fourth quarter. We got some stops when we needed them, and Klotz was phenomenal.”
McGurk finished with nine points and four assists for the Bison. Sophomore Sune Swart tallied three blocks, while Romaine added two. DeBoer, Romaine and senior Tyler Craig all contributed four rebounds.
The Bison win came despite turning the ball over 25 times. A large chunk of those came in the second quarter, when they managed just four shots. Two of those came in the first 1:27 of the quarter.
Manhattan dropped to 1-2 with the loss. The Jaspers were paced by Crystal Ross with 16 points and Nyasha Irizarry with eight.
Bucknell continues the non-conference portion of its schedule when it hosts Mount St. Mary's on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. The game is a part of a Bison women's and men's doubleheader at Sojka Pavilion, as the men will host Siena at 7 p.m.
