UAlbany Women's Basketball Wins URI Tip-Off Championship with 67-58 Victory at Rhode Island
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Postgame Interviews - Imani Tate | Shereesha Richards
KINGSTON, R.I. – With Shereesha Richards and Tiana-Jo Carter dominating in the paint, the UAlbany women's basketball team powered past tournament host Rhode Island 67-58 to win the 2015-16 URI Tip-Off Championship.
UAlbany (4-0) defeated Toledo and URI (1-3) en route to the title. Imani Tate was named the MVP of the tournament with a combined 47 points, six rebounds and seven steals this weekend, with Richards also being named to the all-tournament team finishing with 39 points, 12 rebounds and five steals in the two games.
“It was really exciting, I thought we played great team defense today,” said UAlbany coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. “Yesterday was tough with Shereesha [Richards] in foul trouble, and Imani [Tate] stepped up, then today, Shereesha stayed in the game and was awesome, plus Imani and Tiana-Jo Carter played great, it is neat to see people stepping up every game.”
With the win, UAlbany starts the season at 4-0 for the third time in the program's Division I history.
The Great Danes scored 50 of its 67 points in the paint, went a perfect 11-11 from the free throw line and outrebounded URI 38-22. Richards led the way with 31 points off 13-19 shooting, adding eight rebounds and three steals. Tiana-Jo Carter earned a double-double off the bench with 16 points, shooting 8-11 from the field, and 13 rebounds, while Tate tallied 14 points, six steals and five assists.
“We had to settle down and be poise, we came out in the first half with a lot of turnovers,” said Richards. “In the second half, we settled down, relaxed and played defense.”
“It is a good stepping stone for our team in our first tournament,” said Tate. “Being in the America East Tournament, you have to play games back-to-back, so this shows us where we have to come.”
Rhode Island, which gets second place in the tournament, was led by Samantha Tabakman's 17 points, five rebounds and three steals. Dominique Ward finished with 16 points while Charise Wilson got 13 points, five boards and four steals.
URI got the early advantage with Tabakman putting in two layups off the give and go. Tate took charge, pushing through a double team for a layup then passing through one to an open Richards for the layup.
URI got another couple of baskets off the glass as it pressured in the backcourt, causing a number of turnovers. The home team put together a 6-0 run to lead 14-6 just over six minutes elapsed.
After Abrahamson-Henderson called a timeout, UAlbany started to counter the URI full court press with quick attacks. With Richards and Carter pushing in the paint, UAlbany went on a 6-0 run to pull within two. An exchange of baskets made it 16-14 URI at the end of the first.
Though UAlbany controlled possession in the early part of the second quarter, neither side hit many shots. The Great Danes kept going to Richards underneath while URI went for short range jumpers. UAlbany tied it up at 18-18; URI went ahead and kept countering UAlbany's layups, taking a 26-22 lead.
In the final three minutes of the second, Carter muscled her way through the frontcourt defense for two baskets. Later, Tate added a pull-up jumper at the free throw line to put UAlbany ahead 28-26, the eventual halftime score.
The home team continued the press in the second half, leading to a pair of turnovers and layups for the Rams to take the lead. UAlbany adjusted the personnel, broke the press and attacked the paint with Richards and Carter to go back ahead.
At 36-36 with under four minutes in the 3rd, Carter got some big plays with a couple of layups, then after a Richards layup, blocked away a Tabakman layup attempt. Tate added two free throws to complete the 8-0 run to push UAlbany ahead 44-36. The run later went to 14-2 as UAlbany kept up the quick strikes in the paint. UAlbany had a 50-39 lead after three quarters.
UAlbany added to its lead with a couple more layups to lead 55-41. URI's offense got hot with four consecutive baskets, including the final two for three, for a 10-0 streak. UAlbany held and stopped the run with two layups to make it 59-51 with two minutes left.
With UAlbany up eight in the final 65 seconds, URI continued the press, leading Charise Wilson to score five points and make it a one-possession game with 33 seconds left. UAlbany made free throws, with Tate earning steals on the other end, to hold off the home team's comeback attempt. UAlbany took the victory 67-58 to win the championship.
UAlbany will prepare for a big test on Friday, November 27th, flying to the Volunteer State to play national power Tennessee at noon.
