Dec. 20, 2009

Final Stats

NORTHRIDGE, Calif. – Returning for its first game after final exams, Miami suffered a poor shooting night as it fell to Cal State Northridge, 68-50, Sunday afternoon. The RedHawks fall to 1-9 on the year, while the Matadors improve to 2-6. Courtney Osborn led Miami with 15 points.

The rust from the weeklong layoff was evident early on as Northridge raced to an 11-0 lead. Osborn ended the run with a layup at the 15:38 mark to get the RedHawks on the board. Miami then turned on the defensive pressure, getting several turnovers which led to fastbreak layups for Osborn, Ashleigh Brown and Courtney Reed. A 17-6 run by the RedHawks tied the score at 17 with 11 minutes remaining the half.

A 12-4 run by the Matadors put CSUN in front once again at 29-21. Maggie Boyer hit a three-pointer to break up that stretch. After another Northridge basket, Osborn followed with a three of her own to pull Miami to within four at 31-27. The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half with Erin Wisner converting on a free throw with 00.2 seconds remaining to send the RedHawks into the break trailing, 36-30.

Osborn led Miami with 11 points in the first half. The difference between the two teams was the shooting percentage, as Miami hit 34.4 percent of its shots (11-for-32), while CSUN hit 45.7 percent (16-for-35).

Layups by Reed and Osborn cut the deficit to 37-34 early in the second half. Northridge pushed the lead back to five at 41-36, but free throws by Reed and Rachael Hencke, as well as a layup by Reed got Miami as close as it would get at 41-40 with 10:04 remaining.

Northridge pushed the advantage back to 10 with a 9-0 run. Reed and Osborn hit jumpers to close the RedHawks to within seven at 53-46 with 5:40 remaining, but the team’s shot went cold from there and the Matadors finished off the 68-50 win.

In addition to Osborn’s 15 points, Reed was also in double figures with 12. Miami shot 31.3 percent for the game (20-for-64), compared to 42.6 percent for CSUN (23-for-54). Northridge outrebounded the RedHawks 45-36.

Miami concludes its two-game west-coast trip with a game at Cal State Bakersfield at 4 p.m. (EST).

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