EAST STROUDSBURG, PA (February 15, 2010) – The Kutztown University women's basketball team had 21 assists and pulled away late to defeat East Stroudsburg, 66-58, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Eastern Division contest at Koehler Fieldhouse Monday night. (BOXSCORE)
Spreading the love for Kutztown is nothing new. The Golden Bears rank second in the PSAC in assists per game (16.0). Dropping more dimes than a bank teller, the Golden Bears have handed out at least 20 assists in a game 10 times this season. The ability to share the ball helped Kutztown improve its overall record to 16-7 and conference mark to 7-3.
Leading the way for the Golden Bears was junior guard Kristen Murray, who enjoyed a spectacular homecoming. Murray, who transferred to KU from ESU at the start of this school year, scored 14 points, handed out a career-high eight assists, grabbed six rebounds and made two steals in 29 electrifying minutes. Her performance helped Kutztown begin its four-game road trip on the right foot.
Junior forward Melissa McQuade recorded a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds as Kutztown. McQuade moved into 10th place on the KU all-time scoring list with her effort. She has now scored 1,051 career points. Three of McQuade's baskets were 3-pointers.
Also reaching double digits for the Golden Bears was freshman guard Ashley Wood, who added 12 points and five assists. Overall, Kutztown's bench triumvirate of Murray, Wood and freshman Steph Zewe combined for 35 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds. Zewe scored all of her career-high nine points in the first half.
“It was a little weird coming back here, but after a while, it was fun,” Murray said of playing against her old school. “I thought we played well at the end and everybody came through with a key play for us. This was a good team win for us.”
Everybody's effort was needed as East Stroudsburg senior DeAnna Rayam scored a career-high 32 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Also, the Golden Bears were under siege by ESU's 3-point shooting. The Warriors (3-20, 1-9) made seven of their nine 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes.
The Golden Bears used a 16-3 run to finally take control of the game over a seven minute stretch of the second half to eventually shake the pesky Warriors. Trailing, 44-43, with 12 minutes, 19 seconds remaining, McQuade and Murray took over. They combined to score 10 straight points. Meredith Starr (Richmond, VA/Monacan) and McQuade each made 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give Kutztown its largest advantage of the game, 59-47, with 3:19 remaining.
During its game-altering run, Kutztown's defense locked all windows and doors. The Golden Bears forced seven of East Stroudsburg's 22 turnovers during that stretch. Also, the Warriors went 1-for-8 from the field. Their only basket during KU's run was a Rayam 3-pointer that pulled ESU to within, 49-47, with 7:58 remaining.
“Our bench came in tonight and helped the starters, which was good to see,” Kutztown women's basketball coach Janet Malouf said. “It was also good to see us share the ball because that's something we're capable of.”
East Stroudsburg opened the game by scoring the first five points. The Golden Bears didn't take their first lead of the game until 12:10 remained in the opening half following a McQuade 3-pointer. Kutztown did not trail again in the first half thanks to the efforts of Zewe, Murray and Wood.
Kutztown continues its four-game road trip Wednesday night when it visits West Chester at Hollinger Fieldhouse beginning at 6 p.m. Fans can listen to the game on the Golden Bear Radio Network.
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