SUMMARY
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (4-6) was unable to hold off Arizona State (5-4) as the Hawks lost 64-57 in the Coaches vs. Racism Roundball Classic in the Entertainment & Sports Arena.
THE SCORE
Arizona State (5-4) - 64
Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (4-6) - 57
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Hawks kept pace with the Sun Devils in the opening frame, connecting on 5-of-14 shot attempts to ASU's 4-of-16. The first quarter ended tied at 12 apiece.
In the second quarter, the Hawks were stifled offensively, hitting just four of eight shot attempts. By halftime, Ashanti Lynch led the team with nine points, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field.
The second half saw the emergence of Zamara Haynes, who finished with 15 points, including six from the free-throw line. UMES outscored the Sun Devils 22-11 in the fourth quarter, their strongest frame. The Hawks attempted their most 3-pointers in the period, connecting on 4-of-7, but the late surge wasn't enough to overcome Arizona State.
BY THE NUMBERS
Ashanti Lynch recorded a season-high 13 points in tonight's game, adding three steals to bring her season total to 21.
UMES outrebounded Arizona State 41-32, with Brianna Barnes leading the effort on the boards with six.
The Hawk reserves made a strong contribution, scoring 30 bench points.
The Hawks shot 39.2% from the field, going 20-for-51, and 4-for-11 from beyond the arc. Arizona State shot 35.6% (21-for-59) and connected on 6-of-23 from three-point range.
COMMENTS FROM HAWK HEAD COACH MALIKAH WILLIS
Reflection on the Game
"We turned the ball over too much, and we'll be working on press breaks and passing against the press. We'll also make some adjustments next week. Turnovers and free throws can really hurt you, and that's what happened to us in this game. We lost by seven, but we had a great fourth quarter."
Mentality Heading into the Second Half
"We talked about chipping away, one basket at a time, one stop at a time, and staying aggressive so that we could get into the bonus and make the free throws we missed in the first half. I think we did a good job of that, but the problem was we kept turning the ball over. When we weren't turning it over, we were doing fine. We had a lot of charges, and we just need to make better decisions when we're coming off the ball."
On Lynch and Haynes' Consistency
"Our team goes as they go. When we're playing well, we're really strong, but when we're off, we struggle. We have a great group, but they need to step up and be more consistent so that we're not just relying on one or two players."
On George Mason on the Horizon
"We'll focus on breaking their press and go over their personnel and tendencies. But we need to get the ball up the floor faster and with better decision-making. Some of it was just our passing tonight—the player was open, but we threw the ball out of bounds. We need to get better at that."
NEXT UP
The Hawks will return to action on Dec. 14 when they travel to Fairfax, Virginia, to take on George Mason at 3 p.m. in EagleBank Arena.
