BOX SCORE
West Hartford, Conn. – The University of Hartford women's basketball team saw its championship hopes dashed in the quarterfinals of the 2012 America East Women's Basketball Championship presented by Newman's Own falling 48-45 to the Binghamton Bearcats. The loss for Hartford is the first quarterfinal loss since the 2004 season. Hartford falls to 19-12 overall in 2011-12.
The Hawks were led by junior Ruthanne Doherty who finished with her 10th straight game in double figures with 15 points, while also grabbing 10 rebounds for her fifth double double of the season. Overall, Hartford shot 31.7 percent from the field (19-of-260), making just eight baskets in the final 20 minutes (8-of-30, 26.7 percent).
Hartford got on the board first and in a hurry as Nikkia Smith scored on the opening possession of the game on a jump shot just 21 seconds into the action. The Hawks would extend that early advantage to 6-0 on back-to-back buckets from Doherty, the second of which was an 18-foot jump shot off a feed from Amber Bepko with 17:07 to play in the game.
That early lead forced the Bearcats to burn a timeout, which they used to their advantage scoring their first bucket out of the stoppage on a second chance layup from Viive Rebane with 16:44 to play.
Despite buckets from Doherty and Keyokah Mars-Garrick, the Bearcats would manage to cut Hartford's lead down to a single possession using a three pointer, the first of the game for either team, from Orla O'Reilly with 11:46 remaining before the break.
Hartford answered that bucket from downtown with a 5-0 run, capped off by the Hawks first three pointer, a second chance bucket from sophomore Alyssa Englert. That three point basket gave the Hawks an eight point, 15-7, lead which would prove to be the largest of the half.
Binghamton answered that run with a 4-0 scamper of their own to pull within four point, but Hartford responded by matching that run with baskets from Doherty and Smith to retake an eight point lead, 19-11, with 6:17 remaining before halftime.
Binghamton would then use a 7-2 run to pull back within one bucket with 2:36 remaining before the break. The run, which took 3:41 off the clock, included a pair of jumpers from O'Reilly, which sandwiched a three pointer from Swinson.
Hartford then ended the half with a four point run that was capped off with a jump shot from Englert with 51 seconds remaining in the period. That lead gave Hartford a 25-18 lead going into the break, led by eight points from Doherty. O'Reilly led both squads going into the locker room with nine points, making 4-of-7 from the field.
Rebane put the first points on the board in the second half with a layup 47 seconds into the half, but Hartford answered that first bucket by scoring seven of the next nine points to expand their lead into double figures for the first time in the contest 32-21 with 15:50 remaining in the game. Doherty would provide the push into double figures as she connected on back-to-back buckets, including the first that she converted into a three point play.
Following that double figure Hawks lead, the Bearcats would go on a double digit run, 10-0, to pull within a point 32-31 with 10:50 remaining. The Hawks were unable to convert on six field goal attempts that spanned six minutes, until freshman Cherelle Moore broke the drought with a jumper at 10:19.
Following that bucket, the Bearcats would then scored six of the next eight points in the contest, including back-to-back jumpers from O'Reilly that provided the first and only lead change in the contest as the momentum swung in favor of the visitors.
The Hawks would manage to knot the score at 37 and 39 before the Bearcats took a lead for good on four-straight free throws from Andrea Holmes, that pushed their lead to 43-39 with 1:23 remaining. After O'Reilly hit a jumper and a the second of two free throws 14 seconds apart to give the Bearcats their largest lead of five, 46-41, with 31 seconds remaining, the Hawks made a push but a last second three point effort from Daphne Elliott wouldn't fall.
