Quinnipiac University
Canisius
Adily Martucci Scores 17 Off the Bench to Lead QU Women's Basketball Past Canisius, 86-66
1/9/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
- Box Score
- QU Women's Basketball Homepage
- QU Women's Basketball Schedule (Downloadable on iCalendar)
- MAAC Women's Basketball Homepage
BUFFALO, New York – Showing no ill effects of the lengthy drive and shivering temperatures in Buffalo, the Quinnipiac women's basketball team surged forward and defeated Canisius, 86-66, from the Koessler Athletic Center on Friday evening. Several of the Bobcat substitutes keyed the offensive attack in the first half while the five starters took over in the second stanza to seal the convincing win. The Bobcats' victory improves Quinnipiac's overall record to 13-3 while remaining undefeated in the MAAC (5-0). Canisius drops to 5-9 overall and 3-2 in the conference in the defeat.
Head coach Tricia Fabbri's "Gold Rush" strategy was in full force on Friday as the Bobcat bench combined to score 40 of the team's 86 points in the victory. Adily Martucci (Waterford, Connecticut) led the charge as she matched her career high with a game-high 17 points. The junior guard netted 6-of-9 shots and drained all four free throw attempts to go along with four rebounds and three steals in just 16 minutes off the bench.
Jasmine Martin (Sicklerville, New Jersey) was in peak form as she came through with 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting and 2-for-5 from three-point range. The 16-point night for Martin gives her 10+ points in 12-of-16 games this season while it also represents her most points in a game since she scored 17 against Albany on Dec. 15. Martin's 16 points also increased her career total to 1,469 points, moving her past former teammate Felicia Barron '13 (1,453) for 4th place on Quinnipiac's all-time scoring list.
Samantha Guastella (Red Bank, New Jersey) also made a little history in the victory as she upped her career block total to 151, moving her past Kim Misiasek '01 (149) and into sole possession of first place in Quinnipiac's Div. I all-time career blocks list. Guastella swatted away two shots to go along with eight points, seven rebounds, two assists and one steal as the senior forward made history with a dazzling all-around performance.
Maria Napolitano (Cincinnati, Ohio) combined with Martucci to provide instant offense off the bench as Napolitano added 10 points and three made three-point field goals. Martucci and Napolitano combined for 27 points off the bench in 36 combined minutes against the Golden Griffins.
Nikoline Ostergaard (Vedbaek, Denmark) rounded out the day with a solid stat line of nine points, four rebounds, three steals and two assists. Gillian Abshire (Washington, D.C.) was steady at the point with eight points, three assists, two rebounds and two steals.
Canisius took their only lead of the game as the Golden Griffins scored the first bucket, but the Bobcats quickly took control of the game with a 10-2 run. Armed with the eight-point lead less than three minutes in, Quinnipiac controlled the action throughout and didn't relinquish the advantage throughout the remainder of the game.
Throughout the remaining 15+ minutes of the first half, Quinnipiac dealt with significant foul trouble as Val Driscoll (Stoughton, Massachusetts) picked up her second foul after seeing the court for just five minutes. In addition, 12 first half turnovers for the Bobcats matched the second-most for Quinnipiac in a half all season. But the Bobcats' strength on the offensive end proved too much as the Golden Griffins mustered only 28 points at the half compared to 37 for Quinnipiac.
Leading by nine at the half, both teams traded baskets for five minutes to start the second stanza before the Bobcat lead ballooned to 21 points (61-40) at the 10 minute mark. Ostergaard (seven points), Abshire (six points) and Guastella (five points) all led the charge in the second half to help Quinnipiac run away with the 86-66 victory.
A huge factor in the Bobcat victory was the defensive energy on the Golden Griffins' top scorer Kayla Hoohuli (11.7 PPG heading into Friday) was held to just three points (1-4 FG) in 21 minutes. Tiahana Mills led Canisius with 13 points, six assists and five rebounds but was held in check in the second half as she finished with just five in the second stanza.
Quinnipiac concludes its stay in Buffalo with a matchup at 1:00 pm on Sunday against the Niagara Purple Eagles. The two sides have already met once this season with Quinnipiac coming out on top, 80-66, from the TD Bank Sports Center.
Contact: Maxx McNall; maxx.mcnall@quinnipiac.edu
