Turnovers, missed free throws sink Bears

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BOSTON – Little things mean a lot. That was the hard lesson learned again Sunday afternoon by the University of Maine women’s basketball team.

Tracy Guerrette’s long 3-point attempt from the left wing hit the front of the rim in the closing seconds as Northeastern escaped with a 67-64 America East victory over the Black Bears at Solomon Court.

UMaine wiped out an 11-point, first-half deficit and regained the lead briefly, but wasn’t able to execute in key situations while suffering its third straight loss. Coach Sharon Versyp’s Bears slipped to 4-9, 1-4 in league play.

“We did what we needed to do [against Northeastern], but once we take care of rebounding, then we still have our turnover problem and we don’t knock our free throws down,” Versyp said. “We did OK, but we just didn’t come out with a win.”

Whether it was a few of the 23 turnovers, some of the seven missed free throws or an occasional defensive lapse, UMaine made just enough mistakes to allow 7-6 Northeastern (3-1 AE) to pull out the victory.

“Coach tells us every game, every possession counts and these types of games, at the end you [realize] it really does count because any little thing, if we would have done it right, it could have been a win. It’s frustrating,” said freshman Julie Veilleux of Augusta.

Freshmen Heather Ernest of Temple and Veilleux led the way for UMaine. Ernest scored 17 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, while Veilleux contributed 13 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals.

The Bears shot 58 percent from the field in the second half. Anna James chipped in with nine points and Kizzy Lopez, who played only 13 minutes because of foul trouble, added seven.

Freshman guard Melissa Heon was outstanding on the defensive end and senior point guard Tracy Guerrette of St. Agatha dished out six assists to go with five points and two steals.

Frosh Melissa Kowalski sparked the Huskies with 13 points, while 6-foot-3 center Lani Lawrence provided all 10 of her points and 11 of 12 rebounds in the second half. Northeastern, which shot 46 percent form the field, received 10 points from Laurie Harris.

As Vermont did Friday night, Northeastern took advantage of UMaine turnovers, converting several into 23 points. The Huskies also outrebounded the Bears 16-11 after intermission.

UMaine appeared to have claimed the momentum as foul-plagued senior forward Lopez scored seven straight points from inside to spark a 9-2 run that gave the Bears a 49-48 lead with 8:42 remaining.

However, Northeastern countered with a 9-1 spurt of its own behind two close-range baskets from Lawrence to take a 57-51 lead and held onto the edge.

With Veilleux leading the way, UMaine four times cut the deficit to two points in the final 31/2 minutes. But the youthful Huskies were able to withstand the Bears’ challenges.

“I think our kids did a great job of responding and doing some things when we needed to and had some big buckets,” said first-year Northeastern coach Willette White. “We played some defense down the stretch.”

Perhaps the best opportunity came at the 2:01 mark with NU leading 59-57, but Veilleux missed the front end of a bonus situation and the hosts answered with two Laurie Harris foul shots.

The Bears eventually wound up with the ball and a chance to tie with 13.5 seconds left, but could manage only the 25-foot attempt by Guerrette.

UMaine spotted NU an 11-point, first-half lead, but clawed its way back within 33-27 at intermission. The Bears played most of the half without Lopez, who picked up her second foul at the 18:37 mark and sat out the rest of the half.

With NU’s Lawrence on the sideline after she was whistled for her second foul with 12:40 left, the Bears dominated the rebounding 26-11, but turned the ball over 14 times, including six traveling violations.

UMaine did a solid job of shutting off post entry passes, but left Northeastern shooters open too often.

NU’s tight man-to-man defense forced UMaine to work hard at the offensive end. The Bears did get plenty of good shots, but didn’t get the rolls or bounces on the rim.

The hosts sped to a 10-2 lead with the aid of two 3-pointers, but UMaine capitalized on the inside play of Ernest while pulling within two at 15-13 at the 11:13 mark.

The Huskies cashed in on four consecutive turnovers by the Bears while building a 29-18 advantage with a 10-0 run that lasted two minutes, seven seconds.

Huskies 67, Black Bears 64

Maine (4-9) Northeastern (7-6)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG F AF TP

Heon 2 4 1 1 6 Kowalski 3 15 13

Ernest 6 16 5 7 17 Caruso 2 4 0 6

Guerrette 2 3 1 2 5 Harris 4 9 10

Lopez 3 4 1 2 7 Curtis 4 5 0 9

Veilleux 5 12 2 4 13 Lawrence 4 10

Moldre 0 0 0 0 0 Williams 0 2 0

Stone 1 4 2 2 5 DiMaria 3 5 1 7

Geraghty 1 4 0 0 2 Newsome 3 6 6

James 3 4 3 4 9 Jefferson 3 3 6

Totals 23 51 15 22 64 Totals 26 56 10 16 67

Maine 27 64

Northeastern 33 67

3-pt. goals: Maine (3-15): Heon 1-3, Ernest 0-2, Guerrette 0-1, Veilleux 1-5, Stone 1-3, Geraghty 0-1; Northeastern (5-13): Kowalski 2-4, Caruso 2-4, Harris 0-2, Curtis 1-2, Williams 0-1

Attendance: 660