Top 10 Exciting Games of 2015-16 - #1 Women's Basketball Upsets UNE in NCAA Tournament
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College continues its look back at the 2015-16 athletic campaign with the No. 1 highlight in the Top 10 Exciting Games – the women’s basketball team upsetting No. 15 and host the University of New England in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College continues its look back at the 2015-16 athletic campaign with the No. 1 highlight in the Top 10 Exciting Games – the women's basketball team upsetting No. 15 and host the University of New England in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament.
The Greyhounds, who started the countdown with the number ten game, picked up their 20th win of the season on the way to a 20-8 overall record under 28-year Head Coach Mary Beth Spirk with a 70-60 victory at UNE in front of a crowd of over 1,000 in Biddeford, Maine on March 4, 2016. Moravian had reached the NCAA Tournament as an at-large selection this past winter.
"It was a great accomplishment to get the at-large bid this year," commented Spirk. "With the at-large teams at a minimum, we were recognized for a body of work throughout the season. We had a difficult schedule purposefully as I wanted to challenge the team and they responded positively. Once we got the bid, the pressure was off and we went in to the game against UNE with an underdog mentality as well as nothing to lose mentality. I tried to convince the team that they were just another team like us who made the NCAA tourney. They just happened to be ranked and at home. We went out and played hard and relaxed. Fortunately we were able to get the win."
The contest gave the program its 18th 20-win season in school history, and it was also the program's first NCAA Tournament win since 1992-93, snapping a five-game losing streak in tournament action.
"Honestly, I was happy for the current team," stated Spirk. "They played tough and together. It seemed like perfection the entire game, so I was most excited for them. I think after the game and I realized the streak was broken; I was relieved, of course, but also thought about all those players and teams that did not get the win in the tournament. I wish they could have experienced the joy. I wanted to call each of those players up and tell them that we just won the game for them. The streak was over and we will not be waiting another 20 years for another W."
The Hounds opened the game with baskets from senior guard Samantha Caligiuri and senior forward Alesha Marcks in the first three minutes of the game. Moravian was ahead 13-9 with a minute to play in the first quarter when junior forward Camille McPherson connected on a three-pointer as part of her team high 23 points, and the Greyhounds led 15-13 after the first 10 minutes of the contest.
Graduate student forward Alexis Wright gave Moravian a six-point edge, 21-15, three minutes into the second quarter on a drive down the lane. McPherson connected on a put-back lay-up with 4:05 before the intermission to give the Greyhounds a 27-20 advantage, and Wright, who finished with her 58th career double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds, gave the Hounds a ten-point lead at 32-22 with 1:25 before halftime. Wright would make one more basket to send the Blue and Grey to the locker room with a 34-22 lead.
"We felt pretty good about ourselves going into half time being up by 12," Caligiuri said. "We knew we still half another half of basketball and anything could happen. We had to go back out on the court like the score was 0-0 and win the second half as well. When they cut the score to five, we didn't panic, we kept our composure and I believe that's what allowed us to win the game."
Wright started the second half with a pair of free throws as Moravian moved ahead, 36-22. UNE scored six straight to cut the lead to 36-28, and the Nor'easters then moved within four points, 38-34, with 3:14 left in the third quarter. The Greyhounds answered back and led 46-38 after 30 minutes of action after going 8-for-8 from the foul line in the third period.
"We work hard on foul shooting," Spirk noted. "The players take pride in their success at the line. We simulate game like situations at practice and for that game we made sure to have noise and distractions at the end lines during practice while shooting free throws. Again, luckily it worked."
Once again, Wright started the scoring in the fourth quarter with two free throws as the lead went back to double digits, 48-38, for Moravian. Sophomore forward Trista Cunningham hit a lay-up that pushed the lead to 52-40 with 8:31 remaining. McPherson added a three-point play to give the Hounds a 57-45 lead with just over five minutes to play. McPherson connected on all six of her free throws in the final 18 seconds as she finished the game 13-for-13 at the charity stripe along with a team high 23 points, and Caligiuri was 5-of-6 in the final minute to seal the victory.
"After making a foul shot or two, it allowed me to relax on the line and do the same thing over again," explained Caligiuri. "The environment in the gym was crazy so I had to block it out and do my routine."
Caligiuri finished the game with 11 points and three rebounds while going 7-for-9 at the foul line. Caligiuri was playing just her 44th game with the Greyhounds after joining them for the second semester of her junior year.
"When I made my decision to transfer I was very nervous to start all over at a new school and a new team," stated Caligiuri. "Making it to the tournament was a great feeling in itself but winning the first round on their home court was incredible. We were the underdogs going into the game, and we knew it could have been our last game so we had to go out there like we had nothing to lose and a lot to prove and that's what we did. I couldn't have asked for a better way to end my college basketball career."
Coach Spirk had seven players finishing their careers in the NCAA Tournament with the Greyhounds.
"There is nothing greater as a leader to be able to coach your seniors in the NCAA's. All their hard work, time and energy was rewarded. They were such a good group individually and collectively that seeing their joy when we received the bid, throughout the trip and practices leading up to the game and then the game itself getting the W was the ultimate gift that they gave to me. It reminds you how precious those moments were," Spirk concluded.
You can read the original game story at http://moraviansports.com/sports/wbkb/2015-16/releases/20160304ymacav.
Moravian will begin taking a look at the Top 10 Stories of 2015-16 with the number 10 story on Monday, July 25.
