CUNYAC CHAMPIONSHIP New York, NY----The "Brooklyn" chants sounded once again at the Nat Holman Gymnasium on the CCNY campus on Friday as the top-seeded Brooklyn College women's basketball team defeated No. 2 John Jay, 64-58, to three-peat as CUNYAC Champions. It is the Bulldogs' fourth conference title in the last five seasons. BC improves to 19-7 overall with the championship victory while the Bloodhounds to 18-9. The win extends Brooklyn's streak to straight 46 victories against CUNYAC opponents. Next Up: The Bulldogs will find out their First Round NCAA Tournament opponent during the Division III Tournament Selection Show on Monday at 2:30 pm – details to follow.
How It Happened
- Controlling the pace to start the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs looked to be in cruise control with a 60-46 lead with a tick under six minutes to play in regulation. John Jay didn't throw in the towel, going on a 10-0 run to cut the BC lead down to 60-46 with just under three minutes to play. Clinging to a 62-58 lead, the Bulldogs made three key defensive stops before Ericka James iced the contest with two made free-throws with eight seconds to go.
- Brooklyn caught fire to start the second half with three consecutive three-point makes including back-to-back treys splashed by senior guard, Nancy Pham, to give Brooklyn a 37-22 advantage in the first two minutes. However, BC's double-figure lead didn't last long as the Bloodhounds responded with a 9-0 run of their own to cut the lead to 37-31 in the next two minutes of play. The Bloodhounds stayed within striking distance before the Bulldogs closed out the third quarter with a 7-0 run highlighted by an Ericka James three to take a 54-43 lead heading in to the final quarter.
- Both teams struggled offensively through the first half of the second period before picking things up toward the end of the half. Three-point makes buried by Gotti and senior guard, Dasha Goodman, helped Brooklyn take a 28-22 halftime lead. BC knocked down six threes in the first half to John Jay's pair.
- After the Bloodhounds scored the game's opening bucket, the Bulldogs responded with an 8-0 started by five straight points scored by Gianna Gotti including a three-point make to kick things off. John Jay closed out the first quarter with an 8-0 run to tie the contest, 10-10.
Box Score Breakdown
- The Bulldogs shot 80% (4-5) from behind the arc in the third period, finishing with 10 makes for the game compared to John Jay's eight.
- Brooklyn finished with a slight 10-8 edge in second chance points.
- BC made the most at the line as a team, shooting 12-17 from the charity stripe to the Bloodhounds' 6-12.
Quotables
- "It was a great team win tonight, lots of big plays from our seniors all night. I am extremely proud of the entire team. Winning our third straight title and fourth in five seasons is a tribute to who has been a part of our program - players, coaches, and staff. It's been such a fun season, thanks to everyone from Brooklyn, our fans, and of course our team." - Head Coach, Alex Lang
- "This season as a whole has been an amazing experience. We worked so hard to get to where we are and earned this win. Being named MVP is an incredible honor and I couldn't have done it without my teammates by my side every step of the way." - Senior Guard, Gianna Gotti
Leading the Bulldogs
- Gotti would be named Tournament MVP, scoring a game-high 26 points while shooting 4-7 from behind the arc and a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe, grabbing a 8 rebounds, and dishing out 6 assists. She also came up with 6 steals.
- Ericka James was named to the All-Tournament Team, adding 15 points while shooting a perfect 5-5 from the free-throw line.
- Sarah James also earned All-Tournament Team honors after grabbing a game-high 13 rebounds.
- Nancy Pham chipped in 10 points while knocking down two threes in the third quarter.
Leading John Jay
- Katie Healy scored a team-high 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the championship's lone double-double.
- Chayanne Kelly scored 14 points off of the bench while shooting 4-8 from three.
