Box Score

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson women's basketball team was defeated by Boston University, 68-42, Saturday afternoon in the opening day of the Lehigh Christmas City Classic at Stabler Arena. With the victory, the Terriers improve to 9-3 on the season, while the Knights see their win streak end at three games and fall to 4-6 overall.

BU scored the first 12 points of the game and led 20-1 before five points from freshman Kelsey Cruz (Chester, Va./Lloyd C. Bird) cut the lead to 23-6 with 11:31 to go in the first half.

The Terriers answered with a 15-0 run, and back-to-back fast break buckets by Cruz and freshman Brianna Thomas (Baldwin, N.Y./St. John the Baptist Diocesan) cut the deficit to 38-10 with 4:09 remaining before halftime.

After both sides exchanged baskets, BU scored the final five points of the half to take a 47-14 halftime lead.

FDU shot only 22.2 percent (6-of-27) over the first 20 minutes, while the Terriers could not miss, shooting 64.3 percent (18-of-28), including 72.7 percent (8-of-11) from three-point range.

In the second half, the Knights outscored BU, 28-21, and shot 29.4 percent to finish the contest shooting 26.2 percent (16-of-61) from the field. FDU made only 2-of-10 from distance and 8-of-17 from the charity stripe.

The Terriers cooled off in the second half, shooting only 31.8 percent, but finished the game shooting 50 percent (25-of-50) from the floor and three-point range (11-of-22).

FDU outrebounded BU, 43-36, and 19-5 on the offensive glass, leading to 10 second-chance points and 18 points in the paint. Despite turning the ball over 20 times, the Knights forced 18 turnovers.

The Knights scored a season-high 25 points off the bench, with Cruz leading the way with 11 points, sharing team-high honors with redshirt junior Danielle Pankey (Middletown, N.J./Middletown South).

Thomas came off the bench to score a career-high six points and grab a career-best six rebounds, which tied for the team lead with sophomore Amanda Andrades (Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne), who also set a new career high in rebounds. Andrades also tied a season high in assists with a team-best five.

“After a very slow start after a long break, we showed much better all-around play in the second half,” Head Coach Peter Cinella said. “We also had some new players step up and contribute, which can add to our rotation.”

The Terriers' Rashidat Agboola led all scorers with 17 points and  all rebounders with 11. Kristen Sims added 13 points and five rebounds, while Mo Moran chipped in 12 points, four rebounds and a game-high nine assists. Chantell Alford rounded out the double-digit scorers for BU with 11.

FDU will return to action in the Lehigh City Christmas Classic on Sunday with a 2 p.m. contest against Binghamton at Stabler Arena.