No. 23 WBB Outlasts Alcorn State, 68-53

December 3, 2012

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — No. 23 Miami utilized a 14-3 run in the opening stages ofthe second half to pull away from visiting Alcorn State 68-53 Monday night atthe BankUnited Center.

Led by a career-high 13 points from sophomore guard SuriyaMcGuire and the first double-double of the season for senior Shawnice Wilson(10 points, 11 rebounds), the Hurricanes overcame an early deficit to win theirfourth straight game.

“You really have to respect Alcorn State’s energy andeffort,” head caoch Katie Meier said. “They’ve had a couple of really tough losses. They came inhere confident and ready to battle.”

Down 16-5 within the first eight minutes of the game, Meier called a timeout to regroup her team. The Hurricanesresponded, reeling off a 10-0 run over the next 2:37 to cut the deficit to asingle point. Wilson played a key role in the turnaround, recording four pointsand two offensive boards.

“My biggest thing is whenever I’m in the game, no matter ifit’s two minutes or 20 minutes, to play my hardest, give my best and contributeas best I can to the team,” Wilson said.

Paced by nine first-half points from McGuire, along withseven apiece from senior Morgan Stroman and freshman Caprice Dennis, theHurricanes (6-1) used the momentum to take a 36-32 lead into halftime.Carolinsia Crumbly tied for the first-half lead with nine points for the LadyBraves (0-6).

“Anything I do, I want to help the team out as much as Ican,” Dennis said. “If I need to score less and pass more, then that’s whatI’ll do to help my team come up with the win.”

McGuire eclipsed her previous career-high on a fast-breaklay-up to make it 40-32 less than a minute into the second frame. Miami wouldmaintain control of the game in the middle stages of the half, extending itslead to 55-39 on a three-pointer from junior Krystal Saunders with 9:09 left.

The Lady Braves would claw back, however, cutting thedeficit to 10 points on a layup from Breanna Whitfield. But a three-pointerfrom sophomore Michelle Woods upped the Miami lead to 13 with 05:19 to go, andback-to-back longballs from senior Stef Yderstrom (10 points) helped Miamicalmly regain a late 19-point advantage.

Coach Meier pointed to “the no panic line-up” of Dennis,Wilson, Woods and Yderstrom as one of the few bright spots on the night.

“If that’s what we get out of this game, then I’m happy,”Meier said. “There is a lot of drama with five and six minutes left in gameswhere coaches are really looking for that special line-up.”

The Hurricanes return to the court Sat., Dec. 8for a match-up with visiting Davidson. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. from theBankUnited Center.