Bulldogs top Columbia, 68-47, as Ankoma-Mensa notches 1,000th point

NEW YORK, N.Y. – On a historic night in which senior forward Naana Ankoma-Mensa (Brampton, Ont.) eclipsed the illustrious 1,000-point milestone, the Bryant University women's basketball team picked up its third consecutive victory, 68-47, over Columbia, Monday night at Levien Gymnasium.

Outscoring the Lions (3-10), 40-18, in the second half, Bryant (5-6) wrapped up non-conference play with big road win (just its second of the season), granting the Black and Gold its longest win streak of the year (three games).

Senior guard Jenniqua Bailey (Bloomfield, Conn.) led all scorers with a season-high 18 points while sophomore Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) was terrific, finishing with a career-high 17 points.

Ankoma-Mensa added 14 points on her milestone-reaching evening, while classmate Courtney Schissler (Branford, Conn.) chipped in nine points and a team-high eight rebounds in the win.

Taylor Ward lead Columbia with 14 points, while Tori Oliver added 12 points of her own. Amara Mbionwu was a monster on the glass, grabbing a game-high 12 boards to go along with her seven points.

After a 10 day hiatus for the Bulldogs, it took a while to shake off some of the rust but Bryant looked sharp after settling in to an 11-4 advantage just over eight minutes into the contest.

The Bulldogs continued to dominate play, led by Ankoma-Mensa's 1,000th career point at the 7:05 mark of the first half, holding a 24-13 lead with just over seven minutes to play. However, a 10-3 Lions' run brought the hosts within just one, eventually tying the score, 26-26, with three minutes to play until halftime.

Columbia took its first lead of the contest at the1:22 mark, 29-28, which they took into the locker room.

Ankoma-Mensa led Bryant with eight points at the break, while Rucker and Bailey each chipped in six of their own. However, Ward's 10 points in the final five minutes of the half proved to be the difference in the opening frame.

Neither team wasted time getting things going in the second half, as a back-and-forth start found the two teams knotted, 37-37, just over five minutes into the final frame.

The Bulldogs went on to open up an 19-4 run behind eight points from Bailey, putting the visitors up, 56-41, with just over nine minutes to play in the contest. As the half continued, Columbia struggled to find offense as Bryant cruised to its third-straight victory, 68-47.

Bryant will now have six days before they open Northeast Conference action on Saturday, Jan. 4 when they host Fairleigh Dickinson at the Chace Athletic Center for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Knights.

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