Garden City, N.Y. - A tough opening frame made it difficult for the Adelphi University women's basketball team to make a comeback on Wednesday, ultimately falling 47-59 to Southern New Hampshire in its first outing of the new year.
The Panthers (4-8, 2-4 NE10) went nearly scoreless in the opening frame, as 0-for-16 shooting put them back 17-2, with their lone two buckets coming from the charity stripe. A team that averages 12.1 assists per game, Adelphi finished with zero in the opening half, only landing five baskets on 35 attempts from the floor.
After the slow start, the home team managed to finish plus three after the second quarter, outscoring the Penmen (7-3) 15-12. A bright spot at the break, the Panthers forced Southern New Hampshire to commit 17 turnovers - after entering the game with just 12.8 miscues per game on average.
Poor shooting from either side made for an evenly matched third frame, with Southern New Hampshire holding a three-point edge at the conclusion. The first made three-pointer of the game for Adelphi came from Rolanda Robinson at 6:09 in the third quarter, and a quick five points from the Brooklyn native cut the visitor lead to 13. SNHU used a 5-4 run over the ensuing four minutes to remain ahead by double-digits.
Adelphi put together a valiant effort for a comeback, using a 5-0 run coupled with a stop on the defensive side of the floor to come within 10 with 8:26 left in regulation. An even run over the next five minutes had the deficit to single digits, with four points courtesy of Carmen Kweti, but the opener was too great to overcome.
For the contest, SNHU pulled down 59 boards compared to the Panthers' 33, as both teams put up seven blocks apiece. The hosts managed to capitalize on Penmen miscues, turning 26 turnovers into 20 points and had the upper hand with 13 steals.
Head Coach Sade Jackson and her squad hit the road for their next game before returning to Garden City for a three-game homestand. The Panthers will trek to Saint Anselm College for their next NE10 matchup on Saturday, Jan. 6.
