FLUSHING, N.Y. – Continuing their homestand, the Queens College women's basketball team welcomed the Lions of Molloy University to Fitzgerald Gymnasium in East Coast Conference play.
Three Knights scored in double-figures led by sophomore guard
Jalea Abrams (Elmira, N.Y.) leading the offense for the third straight game with a season-high 28 points, while classmate forward
Nkiru Awaka (Hyde Park, N.Y.) recorded her second double-double of the year with 15 points and 18 rebounds and freshman guard
Arianna Lopez (Newburgh, N.Y.) recorded a career-best 15 points as Queens opened ECC play on a winning note with a 67-60 victor over the Lions Saturday afternoon.
With the win, Queens improves to 3-3 overall and 1-0 in conference play. For the first time since the 2019-2020 season the Knight have opened ECC play on a winning note when they defeated NYIT in Flushing to the final score of 60-55 on December 11, 2019. Saturday's win over Molloy also earns Queens their first victory over their ECC foe at home since the 22-23 season when the Knights earned a 54-46 victory on January 4, 2023, ending a three-game losing streak.
GAME RECAP
The Knights would quickly be put on the back foot as the visitors opened the first quarter with a 10-0 run by the 6:35 mark before two made free throws from rookie
Jaeda Hall (Saint Albans, N.Y.) got Queens on the board at the 6:21 mark.
As the Lions extended their lead back to double-digits by the 5:32 mark, both sides would remain off the scoreboard until the 1:52 mark when
Chinyere Ukaegbu (Brooklyn, N.Y.) went 1-of-2 at the line before a layup from the Lions put them back up by 11, 14-3 at the 1:39 mark.
However, Queens would end the final 1:19 of the first quarter on a 6-2 run including a three-pointer from Lopez as the Knights trailed by seven, 16-9 heading into the next stanza.
Using the momentum of the final minutes of the first quarter, Awaka would lead the charge with four straight points before a jumper from Abrams at the 5:59 mark tied the game at 16-16.
Queens would hold Molloy off the scoreboard for over five minutes before the Lions got the board at the 5:32 mark with a free throw.
The second quarter would see three lead changes and two ties and with the Lions leading 20-19 at the 3:00 mark a second chance opportunity from Awaka would start an 11-4 run for the Knights with Lopez connecting on two long distance shots as Queens lead by seven, 31-24 with 47 seconds left until halftime.
But the Lions would end the final 30 seconds of the second quarter on a 5-0 run but Queens would take a two point lead of 31-29 into the locker rooms.
In the second quarter, Queens held Molloy to 28.6% shooting on four made field goals, while the Knights shot 42.9% with six made field goals as they were led by Lopez's eight points for the two point lead.
The third quarter would be a back-and-forth affair as it saw two lead changes and three ties.
Molloy opened the quarter by tying the game at the 9:35 mark before Awaka put Queens' back up by one, 32-31 at the charity stripe.
The Lions would put together a 12-5 run as they took a 43-37 lead by the 3:29 mark before the sophomore forward Awaka helped Queens start a 10-2 run over the final 3:11 of the third quarter at the charity stripe.
As Queens' defense held Molloy without a field goal over the final 3:29 and forced four turnovers, a layup from Abrams would help the Knights tie the game at 45-45 before rookie guard
Sajol Thornhill (Ashburn, VA.) recorded her second steal of the quarter to help Queens retake the lead for a 47-45 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes of the game.
In a closely-contested game, the Elmira native would take over the 10 minutes of the game as the sophomore led the way with 16 points in the fourth quarter on 4-of-6 shooting and 4-of-4 at the free line.
Following a Molloy turnover, Hall would find Abrams in the corner as the sophomore connected with her second three-pointer of the game to put Queens up by five, 50-45 at the 9:00 mark.
The Lions would respond with a long distance made shot of their own before Lopez and Abrams connected with a layup and another long distance shot as Queens extended their lead to seven, 55-48 by the 7:07 mark forcing a Lions timeout.
With Abrams in rhythm, the sophomore would continue to find the timely bucket for Queens as the Knights kept their seven-point lead of 60-53 intact.
But the Lions would not go away quietly as they answered with a 7-0 run from the 3:07 mark to 1:41 mark to tie the game at 60-60.
With the game tied at 60-60 and a see-saw of a game with five total lead changes and six ties, Thornhill taking advantage of a second chance opportunity would find Abrams in the corner for the sophomore to deliver the dagger with her fourth made three-pointer of the quarter as Queens took a 63-60 lead for good with 34 seconds left in the game.
As the Lions missed the game-tying three-pointer at the 23-second mark Abrams would collect the defensive board before officially sealing the game at the charity stripe as Queens opened ECC play on a winning note with a 67-60 victory Saturday afternoon.
BY THE NUMBERS
- For the third straight game, Abrams led the offense recording a season-best 28 points to go with four rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block.
- For the third straight game, the sophomore guard tied a career-high five made three-pointers.
- Abrams recorded a career-high nine made free throws (9-of-9) in the victory.
- Awaka recorded her second straight double-double of the year with a season-best 15 points, 18 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks.
- The sophomore forward recorded her ninth career double-double of her career.
- The 18 rebounds are a season-best effort for the Hyde Park native and one shy of tying her career-best of 19.
- Lopez recorded a career-best 15 points with three made three-pointers to go with two steals, one assist, and one rebound.
- Thornhill notched four points, seven rebounds (career-best), four assists, and two steals.
- Ukaegbu notched two points, and seven rebounds, tied a career-high three blocks and one steal in the victory.
- Queens held a rebounding margin of 47-31 and tallied 17 second-chance points in the victory.
NEXT GAME
The Knights open the week in non-conference play on Monday, Dec. 9 as they welcome the Yellow Jackets of American International College to town. Tip-off is set for 5:00 p.m.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), Queens College WBB (QCKNIGHTS_WBB), and Instagram (qcknightsny), women's basketball (qcknightswbb).
