Women's Basketball 12/31/2014 9:00:00 PM

Norman Leads Lady Tigers In Close Loss To Hartford

Box Score

BRONX, NY – Savannah State led the consolation game of the Eighth Annual Fordham Holiday Classic for 35 minutes, but Hartford found some room to work in the final few minutes, edging out a 59-55 win.

SSU senior Jasmine Norman tied her career-high of 22 points in Tuesday's loss. Norman has started in nine of the Lady Tigers 11 games this year. However, freshman Jada Young was picked to start in her place on Tuesday.

A minute and a half into the game, redshirt senior Ezinne Kalu suffered an undisclosed injury and Norman checked in for her.

Seizing the opportunity, Norman scored back-to-back layups to spark a 10-2 run from SSU in the subsequent four minutes. The Lady Tigers were off, and Hartford had no answer for their offensive effort.

In the first half, SSU shot at least 40 percent from the floor, 3-point range and the free-throw line, and went up by as much as 16. Norman put in 8 points, while point guard Bria Dorsey put in 7.

Hartford attempted to get some offense going with 11 3-point attempts, but only made one in the first half. They shot 33.3 percent from the floor and turned the ball over 11 times.

With 3:05 to play in the opening period, SSU held a comfortable 29-13 lead. Janelle Harrison sank two free-throws and Darby Lee came alive with four points of her own down the stretch to cut the Lady Tigers' lead to 29-19 at the half. SSU was scoreless in the final three minutes of the half.

Kalu did not return for the contest, forcing the Lady Tigers to change up the game plan.

Hartford continued their run in the opening minutes of the second period. Norman traded layups with Hartford's Cherelle Moore to keep SSU out by 10, but the Hawks went back to the 3-point game plan.

Amber Bepko and Morgan Lumb hit back-to-back treys cutting the Lady Tigers lead to 33-31 with 15:42 to play.

However, SSU continued to execute their offense and soon three straight buckets from Norman, Dorsey and Tiyonda Davis lifted the Lady Tigers back to an 8-point spread. Lumb broke the spurt with another 3-pointer.

Hartford put up 26 3-point attempts on the night, hitting six of them. Meanwhile, SSU scored 34 of their points in the paint and 19 off turnovers.

A layup from Dorsey with 12:19 to play put SSU back in the lead by nine, 43-34. Moore came back with four straight points. The back and forth continued for several more minutes, as Hartford edged closer to SSU's lead.

With 2:48 to play, Bepko sank a layup to get the Hawks within one point of SSU's lead, 52-53. A layup from Moore at the 2:10 mark gave Hartford their first lead of the game. Bepko followed Moore with a 3-pointer for a 57-53 Hawk advantage with 1:30 to play.

Norman drained a layup with one minute on the clock to get SSU within striking distance of Hartford's lead, but the Hawks responded with good free-throws from Bepko and Lumb for the final 4-point victory.

Dorsey joined Norman in double-digits, with 13 points on the night. Norman led the team in rebounds with nine, followed by Davis who corralled eight.

Hartford was led by Moore, who put in 17 points, followed by Lumb with 15 and Bepko with 14. The Hawks improved to 6-8 on the season, while SSU falls to 4-7 and continue a six-game losing streak.

The Lady Tigers return to action on January 4. SSU opens a two-game home stand – also their final nonconference games – against Jacksonville University. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. in Tiger Arena.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#1 Bria Dorsey: G; 5' 7"; Senior

#4 Jasmine Norman: G; 5' 9"; Senior

#12 Jada Young: F; 5' 10"; Freshman

#23 Ezinne Kalu: G; 5' 8"; Senior

#44 Tiyonda Davis: C; 6' 2"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#1 Bria Dorsey
: 5' 7"; Senior
: G

#4 Jasmine Norman
: 5' 9"; Senior
: G

#12 Jada Young
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: F

#23 Ezinne Kalu
: 5' 8"; Senior
: G

#44 Tiyonda Davis
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: C