The women's basketball team (1-0) kicked off its 2001-02 season with a convincing 84-66 win over non-conference Johnson and Wales (0-3) last Tuesday night in Medford. Coming into the season, coach Janice Savitz touted the team's depth, and this played to the Jumbos' advantage as all 12 dressed players saw at least nine minutes of court time and scored at least two points apiece.
The Jumbos christened the new hardwood floor in Cousens Gym by opening up the game with a 16-0 run, led by junior center Emily Goodman, who scored seven points over the stretch. "The opening run was partly due to some Johnson and Wales turnovers, but we were on fire in the first few minutes offensively," Goodman said.
The Wildcats battled back though, putting up a 14-6 run of their own, bringing the score to 22-14. Tufts responded and reopened a 16-point lead, 47-31 at halftime.
"They were scrappy, and they hustled and they made the most of what they could do," Goodman said.
In the second half, the Jumbos cruised to secure the easy win, marking their seventh consecutive victory over the Wildcats. Tufts shot a decent 42.5 percent from the field, including a 50 percent clip in the first half, while holding Johnson and Wales to 32.5 percent shooting for the game.
Goodman maintained her All-NESCAC First Team form, leading the team with 18 points on seven of 14 shooting, while also pulling down 11 boards, including seven offensive. Junior guard Erin Harrington also had a strong game, scoring 12 points and pulling down ten rebounds. Although she had been banged up in practice the week before, sophomore guard Maritsa Christoudias had 11 points and a team-high four assists.
Unable to play in Tuesday's game was junior co-captain Hillary Dunn, who is still nursing a high ankle sprain. Without the starting point guard on the court, Savitz was forced to shift around her players a bit. Senior Katie Kehberger started both halves in the one guard spot, and freshman Erin Connolly also saw a lot of playing time at point guard as well. Conolly led the four freshmen with six points in the game. While Dunn's condition is improving, her status remains questionable for tomorrow night's game against Babson.
Using the bench extensively, Savitz allowed all of her players to work in the new motion offense, and for the freshmen, it provided an opportunity for their first college minutes.
"It was good that everybody got to play so we could all get the first game jitters out of the way," Goodman said. "We should be not as nervous now for the next game."
It was also the first game played on the new hardwood floor, which was installed over the summer.
"The wood floor is so much nicer," Goodman said. "The whole gym is brighter in general, and the traction on the floor is ten times better than it used to be."
Johnson and Wales was led by Janet Lopez, who scored 12 points, but fouled out early. Four other Wildcats scored in double figures, and the team also collected ten steals. Despite these numbers, Tufts dominated in every aspect of the game, although Goodman feels that the team defense could use a little fine-tuning.
"Our defense was decent, but there were times when we had letdowns which is something we need to improve on," Goodman said. "We can get away with it against a team like Johnson and Wales, but we can't make those mistakes against Babson."
Tomorrow's home game against Babson will give the Jumbos a chance to avenge last year's 69-47 loss to the Beavers, which was the largest deficit Tufts incurred all of last year. Babson opened last year with a 9-0 record, but eventually cooled off, finishing the season at 15-9. This year, the team is 3-0, and looking to repeat last year's performance against Tufts.
