EMMITSBURG, Md— The Long Island University women's basketball team dropped its Northeast Conference opener to Mount St. Mary's, 75-57, at Knott Arena on Saturday evening.

Sophomore Brandy Thomas led the Sharks with a season-high 25 points against the Mountaineers. Sophomore Kiara Bell registered her second straight double-double with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Junior Jeydah Johnson finished with 10 points for LIU. Sophomore Ryan Weise distributed a game-high seven assists.

GAME BREAKDOWN

The contest began with both teams trading baskets in the opening minutes. Mount made the first run of the game with a 6-2 stretch to take a 9-6 lead at the 5:45 mark in the first quarter. LIU picked up a pair of free throws from Bell and a jump shot from Thomas to take the 10-9 lead. A five-point spurt gave the Mountaineers back the lead, 14-10 with 2:50 remaining in the quarter. LIU ended the quarter with a 5-3 stretch with another jumper from Thomas, cutting the deficit to two, 17-15.

Mount kept the slight advantage to start the second quarter before another five-point swing pushed the score to 25-17 at 7:44. The Sharks cut in to the deficit with a 6-2 stretch on a jumper from junior Paulani Tarawa and a pair of layups from Bell to make it a four-point game, 27-23. Mount capped the quarter with a 10-0 closing stretch to take a 37-23 lead into halftime.

LIU tallied 34 points in the second half, including a 50% clip from downtown but the Mountaineers continued to hold serve on their home court with the double digit lead in the final two quarters to take the contest, 75-57.

SHARK BITES

• Thomas posted her second 20-point performance of the season, finishing with a season-high 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field. She also recorded eight rebounds on the night.
• Bell posted her third double-double of the season, finishing the game with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, tying her career-high.
• Johnson recorded her third straight game in double figures with 10 points for the Sharks.
• Weise tied her season and career-high with seven assists against Mount.
• The Sharks held the advantage on the glass for the fourth straight game, out rebounding the Mountaineers, 42-37.

UP NEXT

The Sharks take on borough rival St. Francis Brooklyn, on Wednesday, January 8 for the 27th annual Battle of Brooklyn. The 7:00 p.m. contest for the Battle of Brooklyn trophy will air regionally on SNY in addition to NEC Front Row.