Central Comes Up Short in a Close Loss to Bryant

Central Connecticut women's basketball was unable to complete the season sweep over Bryant after falling 56-53 on Wednesday night. The Blue Devils had a chance to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, but couldn't capitalize on the opportunity. Central has lost its last five out of six games and falls to 3-7 overall and 3-7 in the NEC. Bryant jumps to 5-5 on the season and 3-3 in conference play.

Ashley Forker scored an impressive 16 points on 7-11 shooting and added 4 rebounds. Dejah Jenkins was hot from beyond the arc, going 3-5 from downtown and scoring 13 points overall. Belle Lanpher added 7 points in 9 minutes off the bench.

Central once again played a solid defensive game, holding Bryant to under 40% shooting for the second game in a row. However, the Blue Devils couldn't get a consistent offensive flow, shooting just 36.7% and only had 10 assists as a team.

Nicole Gallagher was the offensive player of the night for Bryant, going 4-7 from three point land. She scored 15 points along with 7 rebounds. Brooke Bjelko posted a double-double for the second night in a row with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

GAME INFORMATION

Score: CCSU 53, Bryant 56

Records: CCSU (3-7, 3-7 NEC), Bryant (5-5, 3-3 NEC)

Location: Detrick Gymnasium | New Britain, CT

KEY MOMENTS 

• For the second game in a row, the Bulldogs took an early lead over the Blue Devils. Kandis Taylor made a layup at 6:00 in the first quarter to give Bryant a 11-5 lead. 

• The Blue Devils ended the first quarter on a 9-2 run. Angelique Rodriguez nailed a long three pointer from the left wing with under a minute to bring Central within 4. Belle Lanpher then made a driving left-handed layup as time expired.

• Bryant was able to extend its lead to double digits when Nicole Gallagher hit a three at the 7:27 mark in the second quarter. However, the Blue Devils fought back and cut the lead to 5 with a tough bucket from Forever Toppin with 5:54 to go in the half

• The Blue Devils would not score for the remainder of the half. The Bulldogs were able to rally off a 9-0 and take a 37-24 lead, the largest of the game. Central shot just 2-12 from three in the first half.

• Central came out blazing to start the half, going on a 11-0 run. Dejah Jenkins hit three pointers on back to back possessions, as Bryant held to a 37-35 lead.The Bulldogs quickly responded with a 10-0, and held the Blue Devils scoreless for three and a half minutes.

• Freshman Belle Lanpher was able to keep the Blue Devils alive with an and one floater in the lane with 2 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Central would trail 47-39 heading into the fourth.

• The Blue Devils played its best offense in the final quarter, knocking down 11 field goals as a team. Ashley Forker scored 9 of her 16 points in the fourth.

• Central cut it to a one possession game after Forker made a layup off a dish from Carly Reynolds. The Blue Devils were down 2 with 8 seconds remaining when Forker got a great look at a reverse layup, but the shot went in and out.

• Danielle Delano was able to force a jump ball after the miss and the Blue Devils retained possession. After a timeout, Delano took a tough baseline jump shot that was blocked by Juliette Golden.

• Ashley Forker was able to run down the loose ball, but called timeout when Central had none remaining. This resulted in a technical foul and free throws for Bryant with just 1.3 seconds. Bryant was able to hang on and win the game by 3.

NUMBER TO KNOW

19 – Central shot 4-21 from behind the three point line which is just 19.0%.

NOTES 

• Forever Toppin scored 9 points and added 3 assists. However she had trouble taking care of the basketball, committing a career high 11 turnovers.

• Jamey Napoleon once again matched her season high in rebounds with 9.

• The offensive rebounding of Bryant torched the Blue Devils all night. The Bulldogs pulled down 21 offensive rebounds and added 17 second chance points.

• Central only got 13 points from the bench, compared to 22 from yesterday's win.

• Both teams were sloppy with the ball, each committing 24 turnovers on the night.

Up Next:

The Blue Devils will head north over the weekend for a two game series with Merrimack. Saturday's game will be live on ESPN+ while Sunday's matchup will stream live for free on Necfrontrow.com. Both games will tip off at 4:00 pm.