University of Maine
UMass Lowell
Women's Basketball Cruises Past UMass Lowell for 13th-Straight Home Win
1/13/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BANGOR, Maine -- The University of Maine women's basketball team outscored visiting UMass Lowell 46-15 in the second and third quarters as it cruised to a 74-44 victory on Wednesday evening. The Black Bears move to 12-6 overall and 3-0 in the America East, remaining a perfect 6-0 this season at the Cross Insurance Center.
A game after notching a career-high 16 points against UMBC, Bella Swan bested her mark with a 19 point outing against the River Hawks. Swan finished 7-of-12 from the field and 5-for-5 at the free throw line. Mikaela Gustafsson added 12 points and a team-high seven boards while Sigi Koizar chipped in 11 points.
Maine scored 26 points off 22 UMass Lowell turnovers, the fourth time this season it has forced 20 or more turnovers. The Black Bears assisted on 22 of their 28 makes, finishing the game 47.5% from the floor and 12-for-13 from the charity stripe.
Maine struggled early from the floor, hitting just 3-of-14 attempts as UMass Lowell led 11-7 after one quarter of play.
After that, Maine caught fire, finishing the game 25-for-45.
Maine knotted the score at 11-all early in the second quarter on Gustafsson's layup which came as part of a 20-0 run. The Black Bears used six-straight from Swan during the run to expand their lead before Koizar closed the streak with five points of her own as Maine's lead climbed to 25-11.
All together in the second quarter, Maine outscored UMass Lowell 24-5 to ride a 31-16 advantage into the half.
The Black Bears didn't slow done any in the third, coming out of the half with a 10-0 run, stretching their lead out to 41-16 with 4:16 gone in the period.
Back-to-back jumpers from Swan late in the third before Koizar's runner increased Maine's lead to 30.
Maine's margin did not sink below 30 in the fourth as the Black Bears were able to take their largest edge of the contest at 70-34 with 3:22 to play before eventually capturing their third win in league action, 74-44.
The Black Bears continue America East play when they travel to meet UAlbany live on ESPN3, Saturday, Jan. 16. Tip between the league's top-two preseason favorites is set for noon.
-UMaine-
