Princeton University Athletics
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Tarakchian, Wheatley Lead Women's Basketball to 81-70 Win Over Monmouth
December 09, 2015 | Women's Basketball
BOX SCORE
PRINCETON, N.J. – Overcoming a slow start, the Princeton University women's basketball team cruised to an 81-70 non-conference victory over in-state rival Monmouth at Jadwin Gymnasium.
Down 11-4 early, Princeton reeled off 13-unanswered points over a stretch of 5:32. Alex Wheatley got things started with back-to-back layups before a Leslie Robinson putback of a Taylor Williams misfire trimmed the deficit to one.
Michelle Miller buried a three the next time down the floor to give Princeton its first lead at 13-11 before consecutive Williams and Robinson buckets pushed the margin to six. Jamiyah Bethune snapped the Hawks' scoreless streak with a three-pointer inside the final minute of the first quarter.
Up 32-25, the Tigers' scored seven-straight points. Wheatley once again provided the spark with a pair of free throws at 6:01 before a Tarakchian layup padded the cushion. Wheatley and Tarakchian would then net three of the next four from the charity stripe to make it 39-25 with 4:02 left in the half.
Ahead 48-34 at the intermission, Princeton netted the first 10 points of the third quarter. Getting out in transition, Tarakchian opened the second half scoring on a layup at 9:28. Miller followed with a three-pointer from the left corner before Tarakchian buried a triple of her own from the same spot. Amanda Berntsen capped off the stretch with a layup at 7:39 that made it 58-34.
Leading by as much as 31, the Tigers shot 49.1 percent (28-57) from the floor while holding Monmouth to 43.3 percent (25-67) shooting. Finishing with a 45-32 rebounding edge, Princeton outscored the Hawks 40-18 in the paint and 16-6 in fastbreak points.
Hitting 5-of-10 field goal attempts and 2-of-3 threes, Tarakchian finished with 15 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Wheatley hit 6-of-8 shots for 15 points and four boards, while Miller chipped in with eight points, five rebounds, and four helpers. Taylor Brown scored nine points, connecting on 3-of-4 field goal attempts.
Extending their winning streak to five games, the Tigers improved to 7-1 on the season and 5-3 all-time against Monmouth. Princeton returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 12 against Pittsburgh. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. The first 500 fans in attendance will receive an Ugly Sweater Beanie. Princeton faculty and staff will be admitted free of charge as part of Faculty & Staff Appreciation Day.