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Brandeis University

Abby Kennedy shoots a floater in the lane over a defender in a basketball game
Daniel Oren '27
53
Brandeis BR 12-7,2-6 UAA
55
Winner Carnegie Mellon CMU 12-6,4-3 UAA
Brandeis BR
12-7,2-6 UAA
53
Final
55
Carnegie Mellon CMU
12-6,4-3 UAA
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Brandeis BR 10 18 8 17 53
Carnegie Mellon CMU 4 16 17 18 55

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Adam Levin '94

Kennedy nets 23, including 11 in fourth, but Judges fall at CMU, 55-53

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Brandeis University women's basketball senior Abby Kennedy (Half Moon Bay, Calif./Half Moon Bay) had a heroic fourth-quarter, hitting three 3-pointers in the last two minutes, including two that tied the game, but host Carnegie Mellon's Nicole Timko scored the game-winning bucket with three seconds remaining as the Tartans defeated the Judges, 55-53, in a University Athletic Association contest tonight.

TEAM RECORDS
  • Brandeis, 12-7, 2-6 UAA.
  • Carnegie Mellon, 12-6, 4-3 UAA.
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • As it was last weekend in Waltham, the first 10 minutes were a defensive struggle. The Judges edged the Tartans, 10-4, as the teams hit just 7-of-25 from the field (28%)
  • The rims opened up in the second period, as the teams both hit over 50%. CMU opened up the stanza on an 9-2 run, taking a 13-12 just over three minutes in on a Savannah Gibbs bucket.
  • Kennedy answered with a traditional three-point play on the next possession, and sophomore Jazzy Perez (Johns Creek, Ga./Centennial) scored to put Brandeis back on top, 17-13, with 6:08 left in the half.
  • The home team closed within one again at 19-18 on a Gibbs bucket with 3:42 remaining
  • The Judges closed on a 9-1 run to take their largest lead of the game, 28-20, into the locker room thanks to a buzzer-beater by senior Katherine Vaughan (Bedford, Mass./Bedford)¸
  • Carnegie Mellon got themselves back into the game with a strong third quarter, outscoring Brandeis, 17-8, as the held the Judges to 3-for-13 from the field (3-13). The Tartans took a 37-36 lead into the fourth.
  • The final 10 minutes saw two lead changes and four ties, as Kennedy scored 11 of her 23 in the stanza. CMU opened the period with a basket by Gibbs, but Brandeis junior Sofia Berisha (Old Tappan, N.J./Winchendon School) answered on the next possession and Kennedy hit a second-chance bucket with 7:24 left to give Brandeis a 40-39 lead.
  • Berisha scored the game's next three points to put Brandeis ahead, 43-39, but Timko hit a driving lay-up and Shelby Lewis converted a three-point play after a media timeout to put CMU back ahead, 44-43, with 4:36 left.
  • Brandeis tied it at 44 on a Vaughan free throw, but Carnegie Mellon's Allie Heyer connected from beyond the arc with 2:45 left.
  • Kennedy started her heroics with a second-chance 3-pointer with 2:05 left, tying the game at 47.
  • Payton Bayney scored the game's next four points to put CMU ahead, 51-47, with 1:07 left, but Kennedy's second late 3-pointer cut the Brandeis deficit to one with 53 ticks remaining.
  • Carnegie Mellon kept Brandeis off the board on their next two possessions, but the Tartans hit just two of their four three throws, setting up Kennedy's third big trifecta with 23 seconds left in the game on an inbounds play after advancing the ball on their final timeout.
  • CMU followed with a 30-second timeout of their own, and Timko buried a jumper with less than three second to go in the game. Brandeis's last-ditch heave from midcourt was off the mark, allowing the Tartans to escape with the win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • Kennedy's game-high 23 points came on 9-of-19 from the field. She hit just one of her first seven 3-pointers, but then connected on three of her last four, all in her 11-point fourth quarter.
  • Kennedy also had six rebounds and a team-high three steals.
  • Berisha finished second on the team with seven points.
  • Vaughan led Brandeis with eight rebounds, while grad student Elena Delicado (Madrid, Spain/IES Parque de Lisboa) and sophomore Saviah Shabazz (Plano, Texas/Plano West) each had two assists.
  • CMU had a balanced scoring attack, with four starters scoring in double figures. Timko finished with 14 points, including the game-winner. Gibbs added 13 and Baney and Heyer had 10 each.
  • Bayney had eight rebounds, while Timko had a game-high three assists.
  • Carnegie Mellon had a slight edge in shooting percentage, 41.5% to 39.3%, and both teams hit five 3-pointers.
  • Neither team shot well from the foul line, but CMU outscored Brandeis, 6-4, providing a difference in the game. The Tartans took 15 shots from the stripe compared to nine for the Judges.
  • The hosts had an 11-10 edge in points off turnovers and 30-28 on points in the paint, but Brandeis's bench outscored the Tartans', 14-6, while posting a 10-4 lead in second-chance points.
UP NEXT
  • The Judges will look to bounce back and clinch a winning record for the season when they travel to Cleveland to meet Case Western Reserve on Feb. 8 at noon.
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