TicketsNov. 23, 2005
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Treasure Humphries set career-highs with 19 points and eight rebounds to lead the University of Cincinnati to an 82-58 win over East Tennessee State in women's basketball action on Wednesday night at Fifth Third Arena.
Humphries made 5-of-7 field goals and 8-of-11 free throws, along with recording four assists and four steals.
"Treasure is just a player," said head coach Laurie Pirtle of Humphries, who has shifted over to play the point due to the injury to senior Micah Harvey. "She is handling the point very well and did so under a lot of pressure tonight."
UC, which improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2001-02, also got double-figure scoring performances from Michelle Jones (13), Anne Stephens (12) and Karen Twehues (11). Shelly Bellman grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.
B.J. Banjo led ETSU (1-1) with 14 points and Candace Gibson, Michele DeVault and Kelly Turman all added 10. Gibson, who also came down with nine rebounds, scored all of her points in the second half.
The 82 points scored by the Bearcats was the most since an 83-51 win over Eastern Kentucky on Jan. 4, 2004. UC shot 47 percent for the game and made 24-of-31 free throws (.774). ETSU made just 23-of-63 field goals (.365) and 4-of-20 three-pointers.
The UC defense put on the pressure from the start, which led to several easy scores. While ETSU missed its first eight shots and committed five turnovers in the first six minutes, the Bearcat offense got scores from six different players to take a 13-0 lead.
Banjo hit a three for the Lady Bucs' first field goal that led to a 6-2 run that closed the gap to 15-6 with 13:11 left in the half.
Bellva May responded for the Bearcats with a three-point play and Humphries made a three-pointer in an 8-2 stretch that pushed the lead up to 23-8 with 10:29 to go.
The teams traded baskets for five minutes before the UC defense picked up the pressure. ETSU went the next five minutes without a score as the Bearcats went 6-for-6 from the foul line and got a three-point play by Jones and a trey by Twehues as UC went into the lockerroom up 46-21.
The Bearcats shot 47 percent from the field in the first half and made 12-of-15 free throws. The 46 points was the most scored in a half by the Bearcats since they put up 59 points and 46 points in the two halves of a 105-60 win over Charleston Southern on Nov. 25, 2003.
ETSU made just 8-of-33 shots (.242) from the field, including just 2-of-11 three-pointers. UC outrebounded the Lady Bucs, 26-17, and outscored them, 12 to 3, at the foul line.
Humphries had a game-high 14 points and three assists at the break and Anne Stephens had 10 points and four rebounds. Bellman led the defensive effort with seven rebounds, two steals and a block.
Banjo led the Lady Bucs with eight points.
In the second half, UC opened up a 54-27 lead after a Humphries steal and lay-up with 14:19 to go in the game. The Lady Bucs, who doubled their shooting percentage in the second half, scored the next six points to close to 54-33.
A few minutes later, DeVault made two three-pointers in an 8-2 run to pull ETSU within 18, 61-43 with 9:20 left.
Twehues then entered the game and made a triple and two free throws to spark an 11-2 run that put the game away. She added her third trey of the game, and 90th of her career, with three minutes left to expand the margin to 78-52.
"Karen was a difference maker in the last seven minutes," said Pirtle. "She went in there and did exactly what we asked her to when we were having trouble with offensive execution."
The Bearcats' season-opening homestand comes to a close when they host Detroit on Saturday, Nov. 26 at 5 p.m. in Fifth Third Arena.