Maine beats all-stars in exhibition > Defensive adjustment key

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ORONO – Man-to-man defense requires intensity and focus. While the University of Maine women’s basketball team didn’t have its “A” defensive game Monday night, it still found a way to win.

The Black Bears slowed down the National Women’s Basketball League all-stars with a 1-2-2 zone and finally established better offensive chemistry in the late going while pulling away for an 85-69 exhibition victory with 1,532 fans looking on at Alfond Arena.

Coach Sharon Versyp’s squad, which opens the regular season at home Sunday against Fordham, came away realizing there is still plenty of work to be done.

“I’ve told the kids all along that defense dictates offense and our defense was not very good tonight,” Versyp said. “They were not focused. They weren’t committed to it like they were a week ago.”

The Bears encountered some difficulty trying to guard a quicker NWBA team, especially in transition situations. Versyp, who spent about 25 minutes talking to her team in the locker room after the game, expected a better effort on the defensive end.

UMaine was more successful working out of the zone, limiting the visitors to 30 percent shooting and grabbing a slim 55-52 rebounding margin. The NWBL, made up of former college players, went 4-for-26 (15 percent) from 3-point range.

“I went to a zone, because we weren’t boxing out very well,” Versyp said. “When we got to the zone and boxed out, we got the rebounds and pushed the ball down the floor; we got a flow going.”

Sophomore center Christy Grover of Bucksport was the offensive catalyst for UMaine, scoring a game-high 18 points on 8-for-8 shooting. She grabbed five rebounds, made two assists, blocked two shots and made a steal in 20 minutes.

“For me to score 18 points tonight and defensively have so much [success] makes me feel really good and gives my confidence a boost and makes me ready for the next game,” Grover said.

Junior Lacey Stone tossed in 13 points and pulled down six rebounds, while freshman Heather Ernest of Temple provided 11 points and eight boards. Senior Kizzy Lopez chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds, while junior Eva Moldre added seven points and eight rebounds in 10 minutes of action.

Jenny Schmidt out of Illinois State paced the NWBL squad with 14 points and six rebounds. Kimberly Fuller of Belhaven College contributed 13 points and nine rebounds.

UMaine, which was a bit sloppy on the offensive end and committed 20 turnovers, nearly squandered a 12-point lead in the second half. The NWBL put together an 11-2 run that trimmed the Bears’ lead to 55-53 with 9:53 remaining.

Instead, the feisty Bears recovered and re-established the cushion. Ernest got UMaine going, scoring on an offensive rebound on the front end of a conventional three-point play. She followed that up with a spin-move layup.

Moldre converted a power move in the paint and Ellen Geraghty threw in a seven-foot runner as the Bears pushed the advantage to 67-55 with 6:11 to play. The visitors did not have an answer.

“We came out a little bit slow on our man-to-man, but the second half we got after it,” Grover said. “I got after it and I put a little heart and desire into it – and so did everybody else – and that’s why we won the game.”

Black Bears 85, NWBL Stars 68

NWBL All-Stars Maine

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Stwrs-Jones 0 2 1 3 1 Ernest 4 8 1 1 11

Brown 4 15 1 4 10 Lopez 4 14 2 4 10

Schmidt 4 12 4 4 14 Stone 2 7 8 8 13

Smith 4 11 3 6 11 Geraghty 2 4 1 2 5

Fuller 5 14 3 4 13 James 2 6 2 2 6

Brooks 1 5 0 1 2 Heon 1 2 3 4 5

Gaskew 3 9 2 3 8 Moldre 2 5 3 5 7

Wright 3 11 2 4 9 Guerrette 1 6 0 0 3

Veilleux 2 7 3 3 7

Sobel 0 0 0 0 0

Grover 8 8 2 3 18

Totals 24 79 16 29 68 Totals 28 67 25 32 85

NWBL All-Stars 33 68

Maine 43 85

3-pt. goals: NWBL (4-26): Brown 1-8, Schmidt 2-6, Brooks 0-4, Wright 1-8; Maine (4-13): Ernest 2-2, Stone 1-4, Geraghty 0-2, Guerrette 1-3, Veilleux 0-2

Attendance: 1,532