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The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Thursday, March 28, 2024

Tufts defense forces 27 Hartwick turnovers in first win at home

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Senior tri-captain point guard Kelsey Morehead runs the court in transition during the team's 70-32 victory over Hartwick at Cousens Gym on Nov. 18.

The women's basketball team held the visiting Hartwick Hawks to just 32 points on Tuesday in its home opener, scoring 70 points on 45.3 percent shooting (24-of-53 from the field) and bringing its overall record to 3-0.

The 32 points Tufts allowed to Hartwick is the fewest in a game since they held St. Lawrence to 32 points on March 1, 2013.

The game -- in which Tufts forced Hartwick to commit almost as many turnovers as points scored (27) -- shows the potential of a defense that could surpass the high standards set last season, when Tufts established itself as the premier defensive team in the NESCAC.

Tufts started the game off slow, despite building up a 9-2 lead within the first five minutes, and was unable to pull away for a majority of the first half. With less than six minutes left in the first half, a 3-pointer apiece from senior tri-captains Kelsey Morehead and Hayley Kanner sparked a run that saw the Jumbos knock down five consecutive baskets and 20 unanswered points to take a 39-13 lead going into halftime.

"We had a rough start, we weren't on the same page defensively or finding a rhythm offensively," Morehead said. "But in the second half players starting coming in and out and finding the right routes at the right time."

The Jumbos scored the first three baskets of the second half before the Hawks' Courtney Cirillo's layup ended her team's 10-minute scoreless streak. Hartwick's Emily Stone and Anna Hickey each put up a team-high nine points, but were unable to pose any threat against Tufts' defense.

"Coach prides our team on our defense, so we want to get our defensive stops first," sophomore forward Michela North said. "Our guards were hitting some threes and opening up the middle, and that opened up the post so we were able to get the ball down low and convert on all positions."

The defense led to offense, as the team scored 70 points behind Morehead's team-high of 10, and all five starters -- Morehead, Kanner, senior tri-captain Hannah Foley, North and junior Emma Roberson -- scored at least seven points.

"Coach always focuses on defense and our offensive comes from our defense, so if you're getting in the passing lanes and getting easy steals then we need to take easy transition layups," Roberson said. "[Against Hartwick] the forwards did a great job beating the other team down the field and getting [those] easy layups."

Tufts displayed the depth of its young roster on Tuesday, with scoring contributions from 13 of the 14 players who recorded playing time.

"As we saw [against Hartwick], we have a lot of depth this year and we have a lot of players stepping up, and we'll probably see a lot of minutes from more players," Morehead said. "Everyone has the ability to contribute and it'll be difficult for other teams to defend us with the more threats we have."

Sophomore Josie Lee notched five assists in 18 minutes of play, classmate Katy Hicks grabbed seven rebounds in 19 minutes and first-year Lauren Dillon scored six points in 13 minutes as three of her classmates saw playing time.

And for sophomore North, who is in her first season as a starting forward, the transition from center has brought greater expectation and opportunity.

"Starting now is a big change. I have to help set the tempo of the game and keep the energy up for the rest of the team, even when I come off [the court] I make sure I'm cheering on the rest of my teammates," North said.

But with seasoned forward Kanner working with her on the court, this one-two punch looks set to make the difference on both sides of the court this season.

"Hayley and I work really well together, me playing the five and her the four when I'm in so we just work the high-low really well," North said. "She'll get the ball to the high post and I'll duck in for a layup or cut to the back, or she'll take an outside shot and I'll rebound. We work well to push the defense so the chemistry is definitely there."

With North and Roberson looking to build on the chemistry developed from the tri-captaincy of Foley, Kanner and Morehead, who have already played together for three full seasons, Tufts looks to continue its stellar start to the season at home this Saturday at 2 p.m. against Brandeis.