2012-13 Manhattan Women's Basketball Yearbook
NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - The Manhattan College women's basketball team made the short trip to Iona for a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) matinee on Thursday. It was tight early on before the Gaels (8-6, 3-0 MAAC) used a 17-4 run midway through the first half to break the game open en route to a 76-46 victory over the Jaspers (4-10, 1-2 MAAC) at the Hynes Athletic Center.
Iona quickly jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but the Jaspers responded with an 8-2 rally, pulling within one when Shayna Ericksen's (Hackettstown, N.J.) jumper made it 9-8 at the 12:46 mark. After the Gaels scored nine of the next 11 points, Allison Skrec (Roselle, N.J.) drove for a layup to cut Manhattan's deficit to six, 18-12, with 6:05 remaining before halftime.
However, Aleesha Powell's three-pointer on the ensuing possession ignited an 8-0 Iona rally over the next minute that increased the Gaels' cushion to 14 points, 26-12. Manhattan responded with an Ericksen layup and a three-point play by Toni-Ann Lawrence (Elmont, N.Y.) to get back within nine, 26-17, with 4:13 left. Iona ended the half on a 12-4 rally, though, and took a 38-21 lead into the locker room on Powell's trey at the buzzer.
The Gaels maintained a comfortable lead throughout the second half. After Skrec drained back-to-back three-pointers to trim the Jaspers' deficit to 20 at 62-42, with 6:37 remaining, Iona scored 14 of the next 16 points to open up its largest lead of the game, a 76-44 advantage at the 2:53 mark. Karita Brown (Sterling, Va.) then sank a pair of free throws to make the final margin 30 points, 76-46.
Skrec, Lawrence and Ericksen combined for 36 of Manhattan's 46 points. Skrec had a career-high 14 points to go along with four assists and three steals, while Lawrence tallied 12 points before fouling out. Ericksen just missed her third straight double-double, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds. Brown chipped in a career-best six points off the bench. Manhattan was held to just seven three-point attempts, shooting 28.6 percent (2-of-7) from downtown. Overall, the Jaspers shot 31.5 percent (17-of-54) from the field, and 83.3 percent (10-of-12) at the free throw line.
Joy Adams led Iona with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Aaliyah Robinson added 12 points and seven boards. Damika Martinez, the MAAC's leading scorer with 18.7 points per game coming in, was held to 12 points to go along with five assists. Powell added 12 points, and Diana Hubbard grabbed six rebounds. Haley D'Angelo distributed a game-high six assists for the Gaels. Iona shot 39.1 percent (27-of-69) from the field and outrebounded Manhattan 48-33. The Gaels went 7-for-25 (28 percent) from long range and 15-for-17 (88.2 percent) at the charity stripe.
The Jaspers are back in action on Sunday, when they take on Siena (4-10, 0-3 MAAC) at 12 p.m. at the Times Union Center. The Saints won two of the three meetings between the squads last season, including a 34-33 victory in the quarterfinals of the MAAC Tournament.
NOTES: The Jaspers lead the all-time series 44-23...Manhattan has dropped consecutive games for the first time since a five-game skid from Nov. 20-Dec. 4...The Jaspers used a different starting lineup for the ninth straight game and the 11th time this season...Skrec's previous career-high was 11 points against Oakland on Dec. 8...Brown had five points in the win over VCU on Nov. 14...It was Iona's "Kid's Day Out" game, which was the reason for the early start time...Manhattan is in the midst of a span where it plays seven consecutive day games.