TCU
UNLV
Strong bench, free throws lead TCU past Rebels
3/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 1, 2008
Final Stats | Quotes | Notes
FORT WORTH--TCU bounced back from its only loss of the past month with an 87-57 victory over UNLV Saturday at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The Lady Frogs shot an impressive 64 percent from the field during the second half while running past the Rebels.
The victory, the 399th in program history, moved the Frogs to 18-10 on the season, including 11-3 in Mountain West Conference play. UNLV dropped to 8-19 overall and 4-10 in the league.
TCU rode impressive efforts at the free-throw line and by its bench to victory. Eight of 11 Frogs collected multiple points from behind the charity stripe as the team shot 32-for-38 for the game. The 32 free throws tied for fifth on TCU's all-time single-game list.
Danielle Nunn led the Frogs with an 11-of-12 performance at the line and recorded team season-highs for both makes and attempts. While she finished the afternoon 0-for-3 from the field, Nunn still notched her second double-figure scoring game in the last three contests.
Nunn's points were merely a slice of what TCU received from its bench Saturday. Emily Carter scored 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting (including 3-of-3 behind the 3-point arc), and Helen Roden chipped in eight points. The Lady Frog bench out-scored the Rebel reserves by a 46-18 margin. TCU's 46 points marked a season high for bench scoring.
Helena Sverrisdottir totaled a game-high 15 points and also pulled down a team-leading six rebounds. Sverrisdottir helped TCU respond from Wednesday's troubles on the glass at Utah by out-rebounding UNLV, 38-28.
TCU shot 53.3 percent from the field for the game following its explosive second half, marking its second-highest rate this season.
Shamela Hampton scored 13 points to pace UNLV. Erica Helms and Sequoia Holmes each added nine points, with Holmes pulling down a game-high eight rebounds. Holmes entered Saturday leading the MWC with a 18.9-points-per-game scoring average.
TCU dominated the game's first 15 minutes, building a lead as large as 19 points midway through the period before the Rebels climbed back into the contest.
Carter drained a pair of 3's midway through the first half, the second of which put the Frogs up by 14 points. The 6-1 redshirt freshman later added a layup in transition off a feed from Sverrisdottir to key a 12-0 run that helped TCU gain a 30-11 advantage. The Rebels were held scoreless for nearly five minutes during the stretch.
The Frogs held a substantial edge in free-throw shooting to help take early control of the contest. Nunn led the team to a 16-for-20 effort from behind the charity stripe in the first half by making 7-of-8 attempts. UNLV attempted only one free throw in the half, which it missed.
The Rebels used a 12-2 run that ended with just over a minute left to play in the half to cut its deficit to single digits. Nunn followed with a pair of free throws to put TCU up by 11 entering intermission.
The Frogs pulled away from UNLV for good early in the second half thanks to a 15-1 run over a five-minute stretch that boosted the lead to 23 points. Sverrisdottir (six points), Knight (four) and Ross (four) combined for all of the scoring during the spurt. The Rebels were unable to cut the less than 15 the rest of the way. TCU recorded the game's largest lead of 35 points, 87-52, during the final two minutes of action.
TCU finishes off its regular-season home schedule Wednesday, March 5, when it plays host to Air Force for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off. Five Lady Frog seniors will be honored during their final appearances at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum following the contest.
