University of Delaware Athletics
Red-Hot Blue Hens Dominate on the Boards, Lead Wire to Wire in 63-46 Victory Over Old Dominion
1/13/2013 7:53:00 PM | Women's Basketball
NORFOLK, Va. – Senior Elena Delle Donne collected her 40th career double double and junior Akeema Richards scored a career-high in points Sunday afternoon as the University of Delaware women's basketball team notched its 21st straight Colonial Athletic Association regular season victory and sixth straight overall with a 63-46 win over Old Dominion at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.
The Blue Hens (11-3, 2-0 CAA) posted another dominating effort on the boards with a 59-35 rebounding advantage and never trailed in the game.
“Old Dominion plays a very helter-skelter, up-tempo game where they make you react quicker to some things than what you're maybe use to,” commented UD head coach Tina Martin, who coached her 500th career game. “I don't think we played our best game, but a win is a win and we'll take it.”
Delle Donne led the team once again with a game-high 28 points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots but had plenty of help as senior forward Danielle Parker (at top) ripped down a game-high 15 rebounds and scored nine points while Richards poured in 15 points.
“It's really good to have Akeema back after battling some illness,” Martin remarked. “She's really good at the pull-up, 10-15 foot range shot. She did what she does best today as she penetrated, attacked the rim, and hit those 15-foot jump shots and we needed that from her. I'm very happy she was able to step up.”
Old Dominion (11-4, 2-1 CAA) got 15 points and 13 rebounds from Shae Kelley and 13 points from Ashley Betz-White but got little help from the rest of the unit as no other Monarch managed more than five points or four rebounds.
The Monarchs turned the ball over just 10 times but shot just 27 percent from the field for the game (17 for 63) and managed just 19 second-half points.
Delle Donne tallied 20 of her points in the first half and scored the first six points for the Blue Hens in the opening two minutes.
Both teams were held scoreless for a four-plus minute stretch before Delaware would go up by a first-half high of 13 points at the 10:01 mark. ODU responded with a 15-6 run to come within three at 25-22 with 4:30 remaining in the first.
The Blue Hens led by five going into halftime with a score of 32-27.
Betz-White brought the Monarchs within two at 34-32 at the 17:13 mark, but UD held ODU without a field goal over the next nine minutes to take a commanding 16-point advantage at 49-33.
The Blue Hens next travel to Boston, Mass. to take on Northeastern (9-5, 2-1 CAA) Tuesday at 7 p.m.
