WALTHAM, Mass. – With the game tied going into the fourth period, the Brandeis women's basketball team were outscored, 21-11, in the fourth period as the Judges dropped a University Athletic Association contest to the visiting University of Chicago Maroons tonight in Red Auerbach Arena. With the loss, the Judges fall to 7-14 overall, 2-10 in the UAA. The Maroons improve to 14-8, 7-5 UAA.
The Brandeis offense was on fire in the first period, hitting 57% from the field (8-14) and 50% from 3-point range (3-6) as they took a 20-12 lead. Senior center Kerry Tanke (Manalapan, N.J./Manalapan) netted eight of the team's 20 points to lead all scorers in the first.
As good as the Judge offense was in the first, they were unable to keep up the momentum in the second period, going nine minutes without scoring until junior Emma Reavis (Miami, Okla./Deerfield Academy) hit a bucket after the team missed its first 10 shots from the floor and turned the ball over eight times. Chicago outscored Brandeis, 13-2, in the stanza thanks to seven points from Grace Hynes. The Maroons took a 25-22 lead into the locker room.
Brandeis rebounded in the third quarter, hitting 58% from the field (7-12) while holding UC to 27% (3-11). The Maroons benefitted from two of their three field goals coming from beyond the arc, as well as a 5-2 edge from the line in the period. Brandeis had the 16-13 edge in the third, and the game went into the fourth tied at 38-38. Junior Tathiana Pierre (Jericho, N.Y. / Sacred Heart Academy) scored eight of Brandeis's 16 points in the third to help the Judges climb back into the game.
While neither offense got on track well in the final stanza, Chicago was able to get to the line 12 times, outscoring Brandeis 11-1 in the period. After Tanke hit the first bucket of the fourth at the 8:25 mark, Brandeis went cold again, not scoring for another five minutes as UC scored eight unanswered points. The visitors took a 46-40 lead on a Klaire Steffens bucket with 3:29 to go that made it 46-40. Pierre answered with a 3-pointer to cut the deficit in half, but UC went on another 6-0 run to put the game away.
Brandeis was led by Pierre, who scored a career-high 14 points, 11 of which came in the second half. It was her first career game scoring in double digits. She also tied career-highs with five rebounds and three assists. Tanke finished with 12 points on 6-of-7 from the floor. No other Judge had more than five points. Reavis finished with team-highs of eight rebounds and six assists. Brandeis outrebounded Chicago, 34-24, for the game, as three different Judges had five rebounds on the night.
Chicago was paced by Steffens, who finished with 22 points, 16 coming in the second half. She also led the Maroons with five rebounds and three steals. Hynes added 15 points, 11 in the first 20 minutes. Peyton Van Soest led the visitors with three assists. With both teams hitting 20 field goals and Brandeis connecting on five 3-pointers to the Maroons' two, the difference came down to free throw shooting, where UC was 17-20 from the line, compared to just 4-of-10 for the Judges.
Brandeis returns to action on Sunday at 2 p.m. against Washington University as the Judges will celebrate Senior Day.