ATLANTA, Ga. – Defeating an opponent twice in a season is tough. Doing so in back-to-back weeks can be even tougher. But that is just what the No. 15 Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball team did on Friday in Atlanta when they defeated No. 23 Emory, 63-56.
The win improves WashU to 15-4 on the season and 5-2 in the UAA. The score was similar to last week's 67-56 victory in St. Louis.
Junior
Lexy Harris led all scorers with 22 points and all rebounders with 17 for her eighth double-double of the season. Classmate
Sidney Rogers also reached double digits in points with 17.
Less than five minutes into the contest, the Bears quickly staked themselves to a six-point lead on a layup from senior
Jordan Rich. At the halfway point of the first quarter, Emory responded with a 5-0 run to see the WashU lead dwindle down to just one.
Less than a minute later, the lead was back up to six thanks to a layup from Rogers and a three from junior
Alyssa Hughes. It was nearly two minutes later before either team scored as the Bears saw their lead grow to eight on a layup from Harris at 2:27.
The Eagles finally ended their over-four-minute scoring drought with a layup with 39 seconds remaining in the first period, but a layup from Harris saw WashU take a 17-10 lead into the second quarter.
The Bears' lead would hit double digits on a free throw by Harris, making the score 21-10. Not wanting to get any further behind, Emory went on a 14-4 run, capped by a layup from Alexandra Loucopoulos at 4:06, to cut the Bears' lead down to just one, 25-24.
A three-pointer with 2:34 left in the half saw the score tied for the first time since it was 0-0, but WashU did not give up the lead as a layup and free throw by junior
Amelia Rosin put the lead back up to three. A nearly last-second layup saw Emory go into the locker room trailing by one, 30-29.
The Eagles came out of the break and hit a pair of threes and a pair of made free throws to take their first lead of the night, 37-30. That advantage would be extended once more with 6:13 on the clock, making it 39-31 on a layup from Loucopoulos. But that is when the WashU defense kicked in while the offense got hot.
The Bears went on a 13-0 run and regained the lead while the Eagles did not score for over five minutes as WashU led 44-39 at 1:24. The next Emory points came on a free throw with 1:09 left in the third quarter. The Bears got a free throw and a layup from junior
Catherine Goodwin to take a 47-40 lead into the final 10 minutes.
The fourth quarter was played evenly as both teams went on to score 16 points in the period. The Bears saw their lead grow to as many as 11 points while the Eagles trimmed it to as few as four points as WashU maintained the seven-point advantage for the 63-56 win.
The Bears controlled the inside, outscoring Emory 40-20 in the paint while also seeing the bench pick up 11 points to just eight for the Eagles.
WashU now travels north to wrap up the weekend on Sunday, Feb. 8, as they take on the Yellowjackets of Rochester at the Louis Alexander Palestra. Tipoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. ET.
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Elevating scholar-champions requires resources beyond the institutional budget. Through the W Club, generous alumni, parents, and friends provide unrestricted support that is essential to the extraordinary WashU student-athlete experience—and the ongoing growth and development of the department. Annual support for Athletics allows the Bears to consistently rise to national levels of competition and ensures that our student-athletes enjoy exceptional opportunities as they train, compete, and lead. To make a gift to the Annual Fund for Athletics, please visit our secure online giving form or contact the Athletics Advancement Office at athletics@wustl.edu.
