Oshkosh, Wis. – The Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball team earned a hard-fought 51-47 victory over UW-Stout on Friday afternoon at the BSN Winter Classic at Oshkosh, Wis.
With the victory, the Bears snap a three-game losing skid and move to 7-4 overall, while UW-Stout drops to 10-3.
Senior Maya Arnott had a dominant effort on Friday, scoring a game-high 20 points on 8-13 shooting, along with six rebounds. Arnott was selected to the All-Tournament Team following the completion of the contest.
Also scoring in double figures was senior Naomi Jackson, who posted a season-best 11 points on 3-5 shooting, knocking down a team-high three three-point field goals.
Karisa Grandison recorded eight points and four rebounds, while Jessica Brooks notched seven points, seven boards, and three steals.
Collectively, WashU shot 50 percent from the field in both the second and third quarters, finishing the day with a 39 percent shooting effort. In addition, the Bears won the rebounding edge 37-31 and tallied 28 points in the paint and scored 10 second-chance points.
WU held on to an early 11-6 advantage in the opening period following a layup from Arnott, but UW-Stout used a 10-2 scoring run in the final three minutes of the quarter to reclaim the lead at 16-13.
The Bears responded with a great team effort in the second quarter, outscoring the Blue Devils 18-8, as the tandem of Arnott and Jackson combined for 16 of the Bears' points in the period.
Trailing 20-17, WashU used an 11-0 scoring run to hold its largest lead of the half at eight points at 28-20.
WashU led 31-24 at halftime and continued to play well into the third period, shooting 50 percent from the field. The Bears posted their largest lead of the game early into the quarter after a layup in the paint from Sammi Matoush.
However, the Blue Devils ended the frame on a 12-3 scoring run and reduced WashU's advantage down to just 40-39 heading into the fourth.
It was a back-and-forth battle in the final period as UW-Stout retook the lead at 43-42 with 5:35 to play.
Both teams continued to trade baskets over the next several possessions but a layup down low from Grandison with less than two minutes to play pushed WU back in front for good at 48-47.
Matoush knocked down a free throw with 36 seconds left to extend the lead to two, and the Bears' defense came up clutch on the ensuing possession to keep UW-Stout scoreless.
Jackson sank two additional clutch free throws with 11 seconds to play to preserve the win for WashU.
The Bears will next return to the Field House on January 7 for their UAA opener against Chicago.
