Michigan
Oakland
Perimeter Pair Paces Wolverines to Victory at Oakland
12/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
ROCHESTER, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team bounced back in solid fashion just 48 hours after suffering its first loss of the season with a 96-65 win over Oakland on Thuesday (Dec. 10) at the Athletics Center 'O'rena. The Wolverines' vaunted post players contributed just 17 total points, but Michigan's young perimeter players rebounded after a tough performance in the loss to Xavier on Sunday (Dec. 8). Junior Stephanie Gandy (Detroit, Mich./Northern HS) and freshman Niki Reams (Jenison, Mich./Jenison HS) scored 21 and 19 points, respectively, and led a Michigan offense that shot .528 from the field and scored a season-high 96 points.
| | Reams posted career highs of 19 points and seven rebounds |
Oakland was able to keep the Wolverines at bay despite a pair of hoops in the lane from sophomore forward Tabitha Pool (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS), and the Golden Grizzlies even stretched their lead back out to seven (39-32) with 5:11 remaining. Michigan coach Sue Guevara made a key substitution, bringing sophomore guard Sierra Hauser-Price (Van Nuys, Calif./Notre Dame Prep HS) off the bench to spark the Michigan defense. Hauser-Price did that and more as she and Reams led the Wolverines on a 19-0 run over the final 5:04 of the first half to take a 51-39 lead into the intermission.
Reams, who matched Gandy with a team-high 11 first-half points, scored eight of Michigan's final 14 first-half points while Hauser-Price netted the other six. Senior Raina Goodlow (Detroit, Mich./Dominican HS) also provided quality minutes off the bench after Bies collected her second foul. While the Michigan defense began to slow Oakland down offensively, Goodlow cleaned the glass with five rebounds and a block to help the Wolverine comeback effort. Michigan finished its highest-scoring half of the season shooting .636 (21-33) from the field with only five turnovers, while Oakland's shooting cooled to .483 (14-29) at the break.
Oakland scored the first hoop of the second frame on a triple from Jayme Wilson, but that was as close as the Grizzlies would come in the second half. Reams kept the hot hand going early in the second half, scoring eight points, including a triple, while Michigan gained its largest margin of the game at 19 (68-49) with 12:13 left. A lefthanded runner in the lane by Gandy pushed Michigan's cushion to more than 20 (70-49) for the first time in the game.
Oakland rattled off an 8-2 run that closed the gap to 16 (73-57) at the 8:45 mark but could not get any closer. LeeAnn Bies (Lakeview, Mich./Lakeview HS), who picked up her fourth foul with 13:02 remaining, returned to the floor to score six straight Michigan points and help salt the game away. The Wolverines led by as much as 33 before closing out the 96-65 victory.
Michigan will begin a two-game homestand with a 3 p.m. contest against Seton Hall on Saturday (Dec. 14) in Crisler Arena.
Q U O T E S
U-M Head Coach Sue Guevara
On the game overall ... "I thought it was a good bounce-back game for us after the loss on Sunday. We struggled on the defensive end for a spurt in the first half, but I thought this young team kept its composure, regrouped and got the job done. We did a much better job on the perimeter of taking the ball to the basket offensively, especially (Niki) Reams and (Stephanie) Gandy."
On the play of Niki Reams and Stephanie Gandy ... "I threatened them at practice yesterday that they needed to be more aggressive with the basketball offensively. I wanted them to attack the basket on offense because they both have the ability to just that. They did a nice job of that and also of hitting the jumper when that was available. People are going to try and stop our post game first and that is going to give our perimeter players opportunities offensively and they did a good job of taking advantage of that. We had only 15 or so points from our posts tonight, but when we can mesh both our inside and outside game we could be pretty good."
On recruiting Reams and Gandy ... "Those are two kids not a lot of people knew much about, but they are tough, blue-collar players and I'll take a team full of those kids any day."
N O T E S
Michigan's 96 points is a season best and marks the most point the Wolverines have scored since totaling 103 in a 103-40 win over Central Michigan on Dec. 4, 1998.
Niki Reams posted career highs with 19 points and seven rebounds, while fellow freshman guard Mie Burlin also netted career bests in points (11), three-point field goals (three) and steals (three).
Michigan's six three-point field goals matched a season best. The Wolverines also knocked down six trifectas in the win over UC Santa Barbara.
Tabitha Pool scored in double digits for a team-leading sixth straight game tonight, totaling 15 on 6-12 shooting.
Michigan committed a season-low 11 turnovers.
Contact: Rich Marion (734) 763-4423
