DENVER The University of Denver women’s basketball team (6-6, 1-1 SBC) fell 63-46 to the New Orleans Privateers (7-6, 2-1 SBC) on Thursday afternoon at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana.

 

Freshman Kaetlyn Murdoch (Temple, Texas) led the Pioneers with 13 points and 10 rebounds for her third career double-double, while senior Celena Otero (Aurora, Colo.) added eight points. Murdoch finished the contest shooting 6-of-11 from the floor, while grabbing six offensive and four defensive rebounds. The forward also tallied one block and one steal in 34 minutes.

 

“I was proud of the way our team came back in the first half to grab the lead and maintain it heading into the locker room,” said head coach Erik Johnson. “What was frustrating was how we gave it back in the second half. We took some difficult shots that just didn’t go in and that cost us the game.”

 

The Privateers had three players finish in double figures as guard Jada Frazier led the way with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Also chipping in were guards Brittany Helm and Nicole Holmes with 14 and 11 points, respectively. Forward Ty Felder led the way off the glass as she grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

 

In the opening stanza, the Pioneers found themselves trailing UNO early, facing an 11-6 deficit with 14:58 remaining. Sparked by a Sara Bents (Billings, Mont.) lay-up, Denver went on a 12-6 run to take an 18-17 lead with 6:44 remaining.

 

Denver’s largest lead in the first half was by six points with 3:47 remaining, as Jenny Vaughan (Dundas, Ontario) drained a jumper from the top of the key to give the Pioneers a 26-20 advantage. The Pioneers also played stingy defense during their rally, holding the Privateers to just one point from the 11:52 mark to the 5:01 mark, a span that included 14 points by Denver.

 

In the first half, the Pioneers shot 48.1 percent from the field on 13-of-27 shooting from the floor, but were unable to convert a shot from behind the arc as they went 0-for-4. Murdoch led the Pioneers with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field and a 1-of-2 showing at the free-throw line.

 

The Privateers shot 32.3 percent from the floor on 10-of-31 shooting, and drained 4-of-11 from beyond the arc for a 36.4 percent rating. Guard Nicole Holmes tallied eight points for New Orleans on 3-of-5 from the floor and 1-of-2 from three-point land.

 

Denver held the advantage in rebounds (19-16) and points in the paint (18-6) in the first half.

 

It was a different story in the second half as the Privateers rallied to tie the score and eventually take the lead off key shooting by Frazier. New Orleans extended its lead by as much as 17 points in the second half. The Pioneers shot 15.6 percent from the floor in the final 20 on 5-of-32 shooting and were 22.2 percent from beyond the arc on 4-of-18.

 

The Pioneers continued to hold the edge in both rebounds (36-34) and points in the paint (20-16) as the game concluded

 

Denver continues on the road, traveling to Lafayette, Louisiana, to face the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns on Saturday, Jan. 3. Tip-off is schedule for 6:15 p.m. (MT) and fans can follow the action live via Pioneer Vision on www.DenverPioneers.com.

 

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