PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore came back from a 17-point first quarter deficit to cut the La Salle lead to 35-30 at the half behind a massive contribution from the team's reserves on Wednesday (Dec. 8) night.
The Hawks (3-4) tied the game for the first time (40-40) in the third quarter and were within one basket as late as the 2:11 mark of the fourth quarter, but would not score the rest of the game and eventually dropped the contest to the Explorers 77-70.
"I told them that we have to recognize we are in a fight before we get hit," Hawks coach Fred Batchelor said. "I think we also have to recognize how we have to play against teams like this. This is the Atlantic 10. We can't walk out on the floor like we are playing somebody even. You have got to know that they are better than you. You have to understand that and recognize that.
"It's just like when you get into a fight with somebody who is bigger, stronger and better than you. You better come and bite their ankles and kick them in the knees. You have got to find a way to survive in the fight or get embarrassed. I thought that was a lesson we learned today."
The Shore fell behind 11-0 in the first three minutes of the game and turned the ball over four times prompting Batchelor to take a timeout and make a hockey-style lineup change going to five new players off the bench.
Freshman Cache' Wilson (Baltimore, Maryland) got the Hawks on the board with a jumper at the 5:25 mark. The Hawks would eventually trail 23-7 by the time any of the starters came back to the floor, but that was short lived.
Down 30-11 with 6:36 left in the half, Batchelor made wholesale substitutions again, but this time the reserves caught fire.
By the halftime buzzer, Eastern Shore had cut the lead to 35-30 and the bench had scored 26 of the team's 30 points.
"I thought they came out and they fought," Batchelor said. "I'm really proud of that second group. I told them that they really saved us out there tonight and gave us a really good effort."
Senior Taylor Clayborne (Upper Marlboro, Maryland) led the Hawks with nine points at the half and freshman Lesley Thomas (Browns Summit, North Carolina) had six. The Hawks were actually leading the battle on the glass 26-17.
Batchelor went back to his starters to begin the second half, but as the game went on it was a mix of players who played the bulk of the second half, with the reserves integrated into those who normally play more regular minutes.
"The second half was better," Batchelor said. "In the second half they only outscored us by two. But Like I said, we dug a hole so deep that it takes so much to come out of that. I think that is what kind of hurt us. Again the Achilles heel for us today was turnovers — 19 of them. I thought the turnovers in the first quarter (6) and those in the fourth quarter (6) were the difference in the basketball game."
One part of the game plan that the Hawks excelled at was on the glass where they outrebounded La Salle 43-32. Angelique Taylor (Wachapreague, Virginia) had seven rebounds to lead The Shore.
"I thought we did very well on the glass," Batchelor said. "We had 17 offensive rebounds and outrebounded them. I thought they showed the fight and the scrap that we wanted to have and the discipline that we talked about on the blockouts."
Clayborne put up a career-high 18 points (on 7-of-11 shooting) by the end of the game to go along with two rebounds, two assists and two steals in 25 minutes.
Zamara Haynes (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) had a good day off the bench in her hometown with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal. Amanda Carney (Old Bridge, New Jersey) put up 11 points (all in the second half) and added three boards and an assist.
"Taylor was playing like a senior and that is what we need," Batchelor said. "We need some kids that make it a little easier for a coach. I thought we got some plays like that from Cache', I thought Zamara came in and gave us some really good minutes off the bench and I thought Amanda found a way to have some big buckets."
