WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University women's basketball team was unable to replicate last month's statement win in St. Louis on Friday evening, giving up its most points in a single game this season to Washington University in a 90-54 loss. The Judges fall to 12-8 (4-6 in the University Athletic Association), while the Bears improve to 16-5 (7-3 UAA).
The game started off even for the first few minutes of the first quarter, but then Washington seized hold of the game, going on a 13-0 run to take the lead, 17-5. Play was even for the rest of the period, as the Bears led 22-12 after one. The Judges played Washington more evenly for most of the second quarter, but eventually the Bears were able to stretch out their lead to 20, leading 45-25 at the break. The last two periods were more of the same, as Washington won both the third and fourth quarters by eight points, ultimately winning by 36 points.
The biggest difference maker in the game was by far three-point shooting. The Bears shot lights out from beyond the arc, making an impressive 53.3 percent (16-for-30) of their shots. the 16 3-pointers in a game established a new UAA record. The Judges were unable to answer, as they shot only 14.8 percent (4-27) from three.The battle on the boards was close, however, with the Bears narrowly outrebounding Brandeis, 44-42.
Individually, freshman Camila Casanueva (Santa Barbara, Calif. / Dos Pueblos) stood out for the Judges, leading the team in points (12), rebounds (9) and assists (5). The nine rebounds established a new career-high for Casanueva, eclipsing her previous mark of eight set just one week ago in Cleveland at Case Western. Senior Eva Hart (Manasquan, N.J. / Manasquan) also contributed, with nine points, five rebounds, two assists, and a team-high two steals. Sophomore Hannah Nicholson (Sunderland, Vt. / Burr and Burton Academy) also had nine points, to go with her four rebounds.
The Bears were paced by Stephanie Botkin, who had 21 points off the bench on 8-for-10 shooting, including five three-pointers. Botkin narrowly missed a double-double, gathering eight rebounds. Natalie Orr was just behind Botkin, scoring 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting, and grabbing nine rebounds. Madeline Homoly also was a high-scorer, putting home eight buckets for 16 points. Shelby Mann and Becca Clark-Callender were the assists leaders for the Bears, with seven and six dimes, respectively.
Brandeis plays again on Sunday, hosting Chicago at 2 p.m. Washington travels to the Big Apple to take on NYU at the same time.
--Corey Cohen