Nov. 18, 2009

Final Stats

NEW ORLEANS, La. - Nicholls kept it close for the majority of the game by playing stout defense, but New Orleans' bench put forth 24 points to go along with 38 in the paint to defeat the Colonels, 60-50, on Wednesday night in the Lakefront Arena.

"Hats off to UNO, they really grinded it out and when we made mistakes, they took advantage," said Head Coach DoBee Plaisance. "I felt good with what I saw from our team in the first game, we are just going to have to play a full 40 minutes."

Leading the Colonels was junior guard Ricshanda Bickham with 15 points, while sophomore forward Jasmine Hoskins posted her third career double-double in the loss with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

The Colonels (0-1) out rebounded the Lady Privateers (2-0), 41-38, and committed less turnovers with 23 to 31.

Nicholls led by as many as four - 20-16 - in the first half with 2:55 left, however, New Orleans went on a 9-2 run over the final two and half minutes to grab a 25-22 halftime lead. Aiding the Colonels' lead in the first half was their defense with 17 forced turnovers that led to 13 points.

Bickham led the Colonels at the midway point with 10 points in her debut on the Division I level, while also registering four of Nicholls eight first half steals. In fact, Bickham went on a tear in the first half, scoring eight straight points to assist the Colonels in their early lead.

"We caused some havoc there in the first half, but as the game went on I think that we got a little fatigued. UNO took full advantage and climbed back into the game at half," said Plaisance about the first half.

The Lady Privateers kept their momentum in the second half, increasing their lead to 10-plus early on and extending it to as many as 14 points twice with less than two minutes left. New Orleans outscored Nicholls 35-28 in the second half to get win.

For the game, the Colonels shot 30.8 percent (20-of-65) from the floor to the Lady Privateers 47.1 percent (24-of-51). Neither team did much from the three-point line, combining for a 4-for-21 showing.

Nicholls will return home on Friday to host Louisiana Tech (1-0) in Stopher Gym, while New Orleans will host Southern Methodist on Saturday.

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