No. 11 Northeastern Edges No. 14 UNCW 66-60 in First Round of CAA Tournament
Hunter Peters
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 13, 2024) – A late fourth-quarter run sent No. 11 Northeastern into the second round of the CAA Women’s Basketball Championship presented by Primis, defeating No. 14 UNCW 66-60 on Wednesday night at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C.
The Huskies improve to 10-16 this winter and will face No. 6 Towson tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. UNCW finishes the year 5-25 after the setback.
Derin Erdogan nearly recorded a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to lead Northeastern. She was joined in double figures by Sophia Carlisle, who contributed a career-high 15 points, and Yirsy Quéliz, adding 10 points.
UNCW was paced by Evan Miller with a game-high 24 points, marking her fourth 20-point effort this season. Taylor Henderson added 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds in the effort.
The teams traded big runs in the first quarter, with Northeastern leading 14-12 after one. UNCW threw the first punch, using an 8-0 spurt to take a 10-4 advantage. The Huskies countered with 10 straight points, including back-to-back three-pointers to flip the score in their favor, 14-10. Marian Turnbull capped the run for Northeastern before McCall King stopped the bleeding at the end of the opening stanza.
Both teams heated up in the second quarter, and UNCW cut the deficit to one, 33-32, at the break. The Huskies shot 64.3 percent (9-14) in the second, despite being outscored 20-19. Miller went 4-of-6 in the period, including 2-for-2 from three, scoring 10 points for the Seahawks. Her second three was during a 9-0 run that put UNCW on top 32-28; however, the Huskies scored the final five points of the half, and a Turnbull three gave Northeastern the halftime lead.
The defense intensified after the break as the teams combined for just seven field goals in the third
– three for UNCW and four for Northeastern – but the Seahawks went 6-for-6 at the free throw line and tied the game 45 entering the fourth.
The teams traded blows to 53 before the Huskies went on a 7-0 that covered 4:10 to give Northeastern a 60-53 advantage with 45 seconds remaining. The Huskies iced the game at the free throw line, going 6-for-6 at the free throw line to secure the victory. Northeastern held UNCW to just two field goals on its final 10 attempts and without a made basket for 5:10 during its late run.
The Huskies shot 46.2 percent (24-52) from the floor while holding UNCW to 34.4 percent (22-64) shooting. The Huskies also maintained the advantage on the glass, outrebounding the Seahawks 40-30.
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