Bulldogs top FDU Monday night, 66-53

KATIE WHITTINGTON POURED IN 27 TO LEAD BULLDOGS TO 66-53 VICTORY AT FDU MONDAY NIGHT

HACKENSACK, N.J. – Led by a career-high 27 points from senior Katie Whittington (Twinsburg, Ohio), the Bryant University women's basketball team topped Fairleigh Dickinson, 66-53, to earn its fourth win in five tries, Monday at Stratis Arena.

The Bulldogs (8-13, 4-6 Northeast Conference) maintained a solid double-digit advantage, 53-39, with just over six minutes remaining, but the visitors struggled to score consistently down the stretch.

A Danielle Douglas (Silver Springs, Md.) jumped at the 4:05 mark put Bryant up 57-42 as the Bulldogs held a solid 15 point advantage through the final media timeout.

An Erika Livermore 3-point play at 2:17 pulled the Knights (9-12, 4-6) within 12 points, but some clutch free throw shooting from Whittington held Bryant's double digit advantage with under a minute to play.

Whittington led all scorers with 27 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field (6-10 from deep) to go along with four assists, while junior Naana Ankoma-Mensa (Brampton, Ont.) came up one point short of her eighth-straight double-double, finishing with nine points and 19 rebounds.

Douglas added 10 points, eight boards, four assists and four steals while junior Courtney Schissler (Branford, Conn.) put up nine points. Freshman Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) provided some quality minutes off the bench as well grabbing eight rebounds and two points.

Livermore led the Knights with 17 points and 17 rebounds while Stephanie Isaacs added 12 points.

The Bulldogs shot just 36 percent from the field, but held FDU to 26 percent shooting in a great defensive effort.

After Bryant failed to make a 3-pointer on Saturday, Whittington knocked down back-to-back deep balls as part of a 12-2 run that spanned nearly the first six minutes of the contest. The Knights answered with a few buckets of their own, but the Black and Gold's full court pressure created fast break opportunities for the visitors as they opened up an 18-9 advantage through nine minutes of the opening half.

The Bulldogs closed the half with an exceptional defensive effort, holding Fairleigh Dickinson to just 16 first half points. At the break, Bryant led 29-16, paced by 14 points by Whittington on 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range, while Ankoma-Mensa put up six points to go along with her 12 boards. The Black and Gold held the Knights to just 19 percent shooting from the field in the opening 20 minutes.

The Knights came roaring out of the locker room opening up a 10-2 run to cut the Bryant lead to just five points less than three minutes into the second half. But the Bulldogs responded with a 16-0 streak of their own, building their advantage back to double-digits, 47-26, through nearly seven minutes of the final frame.

A Kelsey Cruz jumper finally ended the Bryant run that lasted nearly four minutes. A pair of triples from Isaacs brought the hosts within 13 with just under ten minutes to play as Bryant maintained a 49-36 advantage.

Bryant will return home for a pair of games as February NEC play heats up. They host Sacred Heart on Saturday at 1 p.m. before welcoming St. Francis Brooklyn to Smithfield on Monday at 7 p.m.

For all the latest news on Bryant University women's basketball, visit BryantBulldogs.com.