Saunders' Shooting Lifts Miami to Biggest Win of the Year
Dec. 7, 2010
By: Rob Dunning
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Late in a close game there are obvious choices for go-to scoring options for Katie Meier’s team.
There’s Shenise Johnson, a first team All-ACC player.
There’s Riquna Williams, the ACC’s leading scorer this year.
There’s even Morgan Stroman, a budding star and one of the conference’s top scorers.
But down the stretch in a back-and-forth game against No. 11 Georgetown Tuesday night, it was freshman Krystal Saunders whose number was called.
Saunders, who came in averaging just 4.5 points a game and was held scoreless in the first half, hit two big three pointers down the stretch and a pair of crucial free throws with under a minute to play to send the Hurricanes to overtime against the Hoyas where they would control the action in an 81-72 win at the BankUnited Center.
“At halftime we talked about how we thought [Stefanie Yderstrom] and [Krystal] were really, really open in the first half and [Riquana] and [Shenise] had the ball a little too much,” Meier said. “We felt like they were giving our corner threes.”
And so the adjustment was made. Williams and Johnson were told to get the ball to their shooters on the wings. They did, and it paid off.
“Coming out of the second half, big time players make big time adjustment and [Riquna] and [Shenise] made the adjustments,” Meier said. “They were huge…they were big.”
Saunders’ eight points tied a season-high, while her 25 minutes on the court were her most this season.
A West Park, Fla. native and graduate of South Broward High School, Saunders has been working her way into a crowded back court that includes Williams, Johnson and Yderstrom, all of whom had strong showings in Tuesday night’s win. Ultimately though, it was Saunders who made a statement in the game and in her young career with her shooting off the bench.
“When you are a freshman that is a big time spot to be in,” Meier said. “We have been waiting for her. She has been playing with a lot of toughness and I thought that really helped.”
As Florida’s MissBasketball last year, Saunders averaged 22.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game in lead South Broward to a 23-2 record and a Class 6A Final Four appearance. Coming out of high school, Saunders was regarded as one of the top shooters in the Southeast, and Hurricane fans saw a glimpse of that talent in an exciting second half of action.
When it was all said and done, Saunders recorded two steals and scored her eight points on 2-of-5 from behind the arc and 2-of-2 from the line. Williams led the `Canes with 23 points, Johnson had 17 points, six rebounds and six steals and Yderstrom poured in a season-high 14 on 5-of-8 shooting.
“We [also] got great contributions from our freshman off the bench with Krystal Saunders and Maria Brown,” Meier said. “They were huge. Shanel Williams with six minutes in the first half gave us a ton too. We needed that in order to win this game.”
Brown finished with three points and four rebounds while Shanel Williams had two points and a steal early in the contest.
