Princeton University Athletics
Strong Second Half Gives Arkansas Tournament Title
November 27, 1999 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 27, 1999
PRINCETON, N.J. - A strong second half by the visiting Razorbacks left the Princeton women's basketball team with a 87-45 loss in the championship game of the 1999 Friends of Princeton Basketball Invitational at Jadwin Gym this afternoon.
The Tigers came out strong in the opening period, building a six-point lead at 16-10 on a lay-up by Brooke Lockwood (Sr., Palatine, Ill.) at the 12:03 mark. A jumper by Arkansas' Dana Cherry capped off a 9-0 run that gave the Lady Razorbacks a 19-16 lead with 8:31 remaining in the first half. The two teams swapped three-pointers in the final two minutes, giving Arkansas a 36-24 advantage at the break.
Kate Thirolf (Sr., Rockville, Md.) led the Tigers with seven points and seven rebounds at halftime. Jessica Munson (Jr., Norristown, Pa.) added five points and three assists in the first 20 minutes of play.
Arkansas opened the second half with a 12-0 run to build a 48-24 lead with 16:25 on the clock. A driving lay-up by sophomore Lauren Rigney (So., Marlborough, Mass.) broke a three and a half minute scoring drought for the Tigers, but the Princeton baskets seemed few and far between. The Razorbacks used a full-court press and tremendous defensive pressure to force 30 Princeton turnovers in the game, 19 in the second half, that translated into 41 Arkansas points on the scoreboard. The Lady Razorbacks shot 64% from the field in the second half on 18 of 28 shooting, and hit 19 of 23 attempts from the free throw line. The Tigers did not see the same success at the charity stripe, knocking down 10 of 18, although they shot 42% from the field (15 of 36)
Four Lady Razorbacks scored in double figures, led by India Lewis and Celia Anderson with 14 points. Anderson also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. The tournament's most valuable player Wendi Willits scored 13 points and added four assists.
Munson and Allison Cahill (Fr., Uxbridge, Mass.) each tallied eight points for the Tigers, while Thirolf added seven and a game-high eight rebounds. Lockwood and Munson had four assists each. Maggie Langlas (Sr., Missoula, Mont.) and Thirolf were named to the all-tournament team.
The Tigers fall to 1-4 on the season and will be back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 1, as they host Patriot League member Lafayette. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be televised on RCN cable.
1999 Friends of Princeton Basketball Invitational All-Tournament Team
Chandra Watkins, UNC Wilmington Jacquie Negrelli, Ohio India Lewis, Arkansas Maggie Langlas, Princeton Kate Thirolf, Princeton
Wendi Willits - MVP