WALTHAM, Mass. –Brandeis University women's basketball senior Hannah Nicholson (Sunderland, Vt./Burr and Burton Academy) got the 10th double-double of the season and the 15th of her career in her final game, but it wasn't enough as the Judges fell to rival NYU, 91-73, on Senior Day. The Judges close out their season at 13-12, 3-11 in the University Athletic Association, while NYU finishes up at 20-5, 10-4 UAA, and will hope for an NCAA tournament bid on Monday.
Nicholson and fellow senior Lauren Rubinstein (Southbury, Conn./Pomperaug), who finished with 15 points, were the team's high scorers. Nicholson shot 6-for-11 from the field and 6-for-6 from the line. Six of her 10 rebounds came on the offensive glass, including a carom and a put-back basket on her last possession. Rubinstein hit a team-high three 3-pointers and was 4-for-4 from the line.
Two other Brandeis starters finished in double figures in scoring, as junior forward Jillian Petrie (Marlborough, Mass./Marlborough) added 12 points and rookie guard Emma Reavis (Miami, Okla./Deerfield, Mass., Academy) had 10 to go with seven rebounds. Junior guard Camila Casanueva (Santa Barbara, Calif./Dos Pueblos) had a fine all-around performance with eight points, seven rebounds and team-high six assists.
NYU junior Janeane Cuffee, the UAA's leading scorer, finished with 31 points to lead the visitors. She hit 11-of-23 from the field, 6-of-11 from 3-point range and 3-of-3 from the line. Katie Foos came off the bench and hit five 3-pointers to finish with 17 points, while Lauren Koyama his four trifectas for 12. Jenny Walked matched Nicholson with a double-double, finishing with 10 points and team-high 10 rebounds, while Annie Barrett had 10 assists to lead all players. The Violets hit 17-of-37 on 3-pointers (45.9%), while Brandeis was 7-of-27 (25.9%) from beyond the arc.
The game was close after the first quarter, with Brandeis owning a 16-15 lead. Six different Judges contributed to the cause, while Cuffee had eight of the Violets' 15 points. In the second period, Brandeis took a three-point lead on a Petrie trifecta, but Koyama answered from downtown. After Casanueva gave the Judges a 22-20 lead with 7:38 to go in the half, NYU embarked on a 15-2 run over the next five-and-a-half minutes. Cuffee had 10 of the visitors' 15 points in the string, giving the Violets a 35-24 lead with 2:18 to go in the stanza with a pair of free throws. Brandeis made a mini-run with back-to-back hoops to get back within seven, but two more late trifectas gave NYU a 41-28 lead at the half, and they never trailed again.
Before the game, the Judges honored seniors Nicholson, Rubinstein and Julia St. Amand (Jupiter, Fla./The Benjamin School) with a Senior Day Ceremony.