The Emory women's basketball team closed out the home portion of its regular-season schedule Sunday afternoon with a Senior Day loss to Brandeis University. The Eagles saw their overall record dip to 16-8 overall, 5-8 in the University Athletic Association, after dropping a close 75-72 verdict to the Judges who raised their overall slate to 13-11, 7-6 in the league.
Emory shot 35.3 percent (30-of-85) from the floor compared to BU's 47.5 percent (29-of-61). The Eagles converted just 30.4 percent (7-of-23) from three-point range while the Judges finished at 36.4 percent (4-of-11). Emory finished with a 46-44 edge in rebounding, 24-14 on the offensive end, and was paced in the category by senior Savannah Morgan who grabbed nine boards.
Morgan led all players with 21 points, her eighth contest this year of 20 or more points. Senior Selena Castillo was Emory's other double-figure scorer with 12 points. Castillo also grabbed six boards, tying classmate Gabi Whitmer for second on the squad, and dished out three assists in 29 minutes of action.
Morgan got out of the blocks quickly, scoring 11 of the team's first 13 points as the Eagles bolted to a 13-4 lead 6:37 into to contest. Morgan later drilled a three pointer that enabled Emory to claim a 22-17 advantage. The Judges did battle back to take hold a three-point lead, 31-28, with 4:13 remaining in the stanza, but a 12-4 Emory spurt highlighted by a pair of three pointers by freshman Fran Sweeney and one from Marissa Resnick, pushed Emory to a 40-35 lead with a little less than a minute on the clock. A triple by BU's Janelle Rodriguez would cut Emory's advantage to two points at halftime.
Both teams jostled for momentum during the early stages of the second half and a Morgan three pointer boosted Emory to a 54-50 lead with 13:30 remaining. The Judges responded with a 15-6 run, with Niki Laskaris hitting a pair of triples in that stretch, to go up by a 65-60 count. Seven straight points by Emory enabled it to reclaim the lead at 67-65 with 4:11 on the clock, and the Eagles still held a 70-68 advantage with 3:34 remaining following a three-point play by Castillo. A pair of free throws by Rodriguez, followed by a bucket by Paris Hodges put the Judges ahead by a point, but Morgan responded with a bucket that put Emory in front, 72-71 with 2:00 left. However, Emory would not score the remainder of the contest as a basket by Maria Jackson with 1:43 on the clock put the Judges ahead for good. Jackson would lead the Judges in scoring with 15 points. BU would add a couple of free throws over the final 14 ticks to come away with the win.
Emory closes out the season next Saturday (Mar. 1) at Rochester.