TicketsDALLAS – Junior guard Jillian Hayes finished with her fifth double-double of the season, but the University of Cincinnati women's basketball team dropped a 55-44 road contest to SMU inside Moody Coliseum on Tuesday.
Cincinnati is now 7-9 overall, 0-3 in the AAC on the season.
Cincinnati raced out to a 5-0 lead in the opening minute behind a tough finish from Hayes and a three from Mya Jackson before the Mustangs responded with a 13-2 spurt of their own at the first quarter media timeout.
Senior guard Sofia Gritzali split a pair of defenders before evading the last with a spinning finish to cut the deficit to 27-14 with 2:37 remaining in the second quarter. Cincinnati forced SMU into nine first half turnovers and scored eight of its 14 first-half points inside the paint, but trailed 29-14 at the half.
Gritzali provided a valuable spark off the bench, finishing with six points, three assists and two rebounds in a season-high 24 minutes.
Cincinnati went on a 4-0 run and held its host without a field goal for the first three minutes of the second half. The spurt was a part of a 9-2 stretch that cut the deficit to 31-23 at the 6:02-mark of the third. The Bearcats also limited the Mustangs without a field goal over the final 3:24 minutes and outscored their host 15-13 in the period.
A pair of second chance opportunities from senior forward Jadyn Scott and junior forward/center Malea Williams propelled an 8-0 run over 2:25 minutes that cut the deficit back to single digits at 46-37 in the fourth, but the margin would not get any closer than nine for the remainder of the contest.
Sophomore guard Lojain Elfatairy finished with a career-high six rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.
Cincinnati was active in the passing lanes with 15 steals, its second most this season. The Bearcats also converted on 6-of-6 from the free throw line.
Cincinnati will return to Fifth Third Arena to host Memphis on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m. ET.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati women's basketball, visit GoBEARCATS.com and follow @GoBearcatsWBB on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Cincinnati is now 7-9 overall, 0-3 in the AAC on the season.
Cincinnati raced out to a 5-0 lead in the opening minute behind a tough finish from Hayes and a three from Mya Jackson before the Mustangs responded with a 13-2 spurt of their own at the first quarter media timeout.
Senior guard Sofia Gritzali split a pair of defenders before evading the last with a spinning finish to cut the deficit to 27-14 with 2:37 remaining in the second quarter. Cincinnati forced SMU into nine first half turnovers and scored eight of its 14 first-half points inside the paint, but trailed 29-14 at the half.
Gritzali provided a valuable spark off the bench, finishing with six points, three assists and two rebounds in a season-high 24 minutes.
Cincinnati went on a 4-0 run and held its host without a field goal for the first three minutes of the second half. The spurt was a part of a 9-2 stretch that cut the deficit to 31-23 at the 6:02-mark of the third. The Bearcats also limited the Mustangs without a field goal over the final 3:24 minutes and outscored their host 15-13 in the period.
A pair of second chance opportunities from senior forward Jadyn Scott and junior forward/center Malea Williams propelled an 8-0 run over 2:25 minutes that cut the deficit back to single digits at 46-37 in the fourth, but the margin would not get any closer than nine for the remainder of the contest.
Sophomore guard Lojain Elfatairy finished with a career-high six rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.
Cincinnati was active in the passing lanes with 15 steals, its second most this season. The Bearcats also converted on 6-of-6 from the free throw line.
Cincinnati will return to Fifth Third Arena to host Memphis on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m. ET.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati women's basketball, visit GoBEARCATS.com and follow @GoBearcatsWBB on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.