Bulldogs stay hot, top LIU 72-66 Sat. in Smithfield

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Behind yet another double-double effort from senior forward Naana Ankoma-Mensa (Brampton, Ont.), the Bryant University women's basketball team topped LIU Brooklyn, 72-66, Saturday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center.

The Bulldogs (9-7, 4-1 Northeast Conference), winners of seven out of their last eight games, are off to their best start in league play in program history while the Blackbirds (3-13, 1-4 NEC) head to Fairleigh Dickinson on Monday looking to get back on track.

Ankoma-Mensa led all scorers with 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting to go along with her game-high 13 rebounds in 40 minutes. Senior guard Stephanie Cardamone (Freehold, N.J.) put up 14 points, including 3-of-5 shooting from deep, while sophomore forward Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) continued her strong play with 13 points and seven rebounds.

Graduate student Meredith Soper (Winthrop, Mass.) put up another strong effort with nine points, eight assists and three boards while senior point guard Jenniqua Bailey (Bloomfield, Conn.) dished out a career-high tying eight helpers in 39 minutes.

The Bulldog bench put up 19 points, outscoring the opposition for just the third time in 16 games this season. 19 points from the reserves is also more than the last three games combined for Bryant.

After opening up an early advantage, the Bulldogs saw their once nine-point lead dwindle down to three points, 26-23, with nearly four minutes remaining until the halftime break. However, Bryant continued to apply consistent pressure on the visitors closing the first frame on a 13-2 run to take a 39-25 edge into the locker room.

Ankoma-Mensa led the Bulldogs with eight points and six boards while Cardamone added eight points on 3-of-6 shooting off the bench. Roberts, Bhasin and Whippy each chipped in six points for the Blackbirds.

The Black and Gold continued to maintain their dominance through the opening moments of the second half thanks to strong post play from both Ankoma-Mensa and Rucker.

However, the Blackbirds put together a 13-1 run from that last nearly five minutes to cut the Bryant lead to just five points, 51-46, with 11:01 remaining in the contest. The Bulldogs responded with a 11-3 run of their own highlighted by a pair of buckets from Ankoma-Mensa to build the lead back to 13 points, 62-49, through the eight minute mark of the second half.

LIU continued to fight, cutting the lead down to just four points until a Cardamone trey boosted the Bryant advantage back to seven points with 3:38 to play. Just over a minute later the Blackbirds found themselves down just three points, 66-63, until another Ankoma-Mensa layup put Bryant back up five, 68-63, with just 58 ticks left on the scoreboard. A pair of Courtney Schissler (Branford, Conn.) and Bailey free throws secured the 72-66 victory for the Black and Gold, their seventh in eight games.

Playing arguably their best basketball of the Division I era, the Bulldogs will surely be tested Monday night when they welcome NEC leading St. Francis Brooklyn to Smithfield, Monday night for a 5 p.m. showdown.

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