WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University women's basketball team used a dominant second period to establish a lead, then withstood a second-half rally as the Judges picked up their first University Athletic Association win of the season, 77-71, over #7-ranked University of Rochester tonight in Red Auerbach Arena.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis, 6-9, 1-3 UAA.
• Rochester, 13-2, 3-1 UAA, Ranked #7 in Division III by D3hoops.com, #9 by WBCA.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Rochester started strong, opening up an early 12-5 lead in the first period.
• Brandeis battled back to cut the deficit to two on a Shannon Smally (Foxborough, Mass./Foxborough) lay-up in the waning seconds of the quarter that made it 19-17 after 10 minutes.
• The Judges were dominant in the second period, when they outscored Rochester, 26-9.
• Brandeis hit 11-of-17 from the field, while holding UR to 2-of-17. It was a balanced attack, as five different players had four or five points. The Judges also outrebounded their foes, 16-8.
• Facing a 43-28 lead at halftime, Rochester battled back in the third quarter. They outscored the Judges, 18-12, to close within nine at 55-46 with 10 minutes to go.
• The Yellowjackets continued their tear, opening the fourth quarter on a 16-3 run.
• UR's leading scorer, Katie Titus, who was limited to four points in nine minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, hit back-to-back 3-pointers to Rochester their first lead since early in the second period at 59-58, and then extend it to four points at 62-58 on the next possession with 6:20 left in the game.
• Brandeis responded behind senior Emma Reavis (Miami, Okla./Deerfield Acad.), who had 10 points and an assist over a three-plus-minute span as the Judges scored the next 12 points of the game to take a 70-62 lead with 3:10 to go.
• UR hit two quick buckets to cut the deficit in half, but Brandeis sophomore Mollie Obar (North Yarmouth, Maine/Greely) stopped the momentum with a lay-up and the Judges hung on for the six-point win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Reavis just missed her second double-double of the season, finishing with a team-high 18 points and nine assists, tying her career-high. Twelve of her 18 points came in the fourth quarter, all in the last six minutes.
• She hit 8-of-14 for the game from the field and 2-of-4 from the line.
• Her nine assists were the team's highest single-game total of the season.
• Reavis also had five assists and two steals.
• Smally added 14 points and six rebounds for the Judges. She hit her first six shots and finished  7-of-9 from the field.
• Obar came off the bench and provided a spark with a season-high 11 points, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, in 18 minutes.
• The Judges also saw three other starters score eight points, while four different players had five or six rebounds. Senior Francesca Marchese (Staten Island, N.Y./Staten Island Academy) pulled down a career-high six to match Smally for team-high honors.
• Rochester was paced by Titus, who finished with game-highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds, tallying 18 and 8, respectively, in the second half.
• Abby Gress scored 12 points off the bench – eight in the second half – for the Yellowjackets.
• Maura Leverone matched Reavis with nine assists for the game and led all players with three steals.
• For the game, Brandeis outshot UR from the field, 53% (32-60) to 39% (28-71). They also held the Yellowjackets to just 23% from 3-point range (5-22).

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• With two 3-pointers tonight, Marchese moved into sole possession of fifth place on the Judges's career list. Her 115 career 3s have come in just 64 games, compared with more than 90 games for anyone else in Brandeis's top 13.
• The Judges have won the first meeting of the season with Rochester for the last four years.
• This was the first time in seven games that the Judges have won when trailing after the first quarter.

UP NEXT

• Brandeis takes on Emory University on Sunday at 2 p.m. Rochester is at NYU at the same time. NYU defeated the Eagles, 76-63.