HAMDEN — Quinnipiac women’s basketball cruised to its seventh win of the season after defeating Yale 76-50 with relative ease Monday night.
During the early stages of the game, Quinnipiac focused on quick and effective transition opportunities. The ball flew across the court as soon as a Bobcat player grabbed a defensive board and took just a few steps.
Freshman point guard Gal Raviv set up these transition opportunities, often launching the ball from before halfcourt to catch the defense off guard.
Yale seemed to live and die by the three ball, as the Bulldogs attempted 27 shots beyond the arc. But the shots just weren’t falling and Yale only hit six of its attempts, culminating in an underwhelming 22% from three.
During the closing minutes of the first quarter, the contest between the two Connecticut teams was close. The score was 17-12 as Quinnipiac held on to a five point lead.
But the Bobcats roared their way to new heights, going on an 18-0 run during the second quarter that culminated in a 36-12 score before Yale could answer with any more points.
“I think keeping (Yale) off the glass with their missed shots helped,” head coach Tricia Fabbri said. “We corralled them and they were one-and-done. I do think our defensive end of the floor can continue to grow and improve.”
The Bulldogs’ troubles from three-point land were at their peak during the scoreless run as the team scored on none of their eight attempts from beyond the arc.
That unfavorable run put the Bulldogs in a hole they couldn’t dig out of, as the Bobcats were on cruise control for most of the second half.
So in an uneventful game that the team won by 26, how does Quinnipiac remain focused?
Miami.
During Quinnipiac’s matchup against the Hurricanes earlier in the season, the Bobcats found themselves in a similar situation to Yale. Down by over 20 points during the first half, Quinnipiac was able to claw its way back just to lose in overtime.
“We just think about how we lost to Miami,” graduate student forward Caranda Perea said. “It just didn’t play out for us in the end and that’s one where I’ll forever want back and I hope I see them in the tournament.”
While Yale relied on the three-ball, Quinnipiac’s more traditional approach of finding points in the paint led to Perea scoring 14 and junior forward Ella O’Donnell putting up 16.
The Bobcats will travel to Burlington, Vermont Dec. 15 to take on the Catamounts. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
