ORONO – The University of Maine women’s basketball team had experienced a rare roll of good fortune, winning two of its last three games.

But the Black Bears could not catch a break Wednesday. Nor could they make a shot in the first half, nor hold onto the ball, nor disrupt the University of New Hampshire offense.

You get the picture.

UNH controlled the ball and the game to beat Maine 66-50 before an estimated crowd of 500 at Memorial Gymnasium.

Maine trailed 32-21 at halftime after shooting 28 percent. The Black Bears tried to rally in the second half, but turnovers — a total of 19 — held them back.

Maine dropped to 5-16, 2-6 in America East, while UNH improved to 11-9, 4-4.

“They got 30 points off our turnovers and we can’t have those lapses,” said senior guard Brittany Williams, who led Maine with 14 points.

Senior center Samantha Baranowski added 12. Sophomore guard Ashleigh Roberts had a double-double (11 points/10 rebounds), and freshman guard Rebecca Knight of Alfred had six points and nine rebounds.

UNH forward Denise Beliveau led all scorers with 24, including 3 of 5 3-pointers. She hit 13 points in 31/2-minute span in the second half. UNH junior forward Morgan Frame of Waterville notched seven points and eight rebounds.

The game highlighted the rebuilding job for first-year head coach Richard Barron. He not only is challenged to field a talented Black Bears team, he is also battling attrition.

Because of injuries and other reasons, Maine dressed only nine players.

And Barron used only six of them, stating “coach’s decision” for not playing the others. He did not elaborate.

Williams played 38 minutes. The other starters played at least 34.

“You got to do what you have to do,” Williams said. “You can’t complain about the minutes. You’re getting playing time.”

UNH Coach Maureen Magarity noticed Maine’s short bench.

“We knew we needed to keep pushing the ball,” Magarity said. “It’s something we emphasized at halftime.”

UNH made only seven turnovers and had 18 assists to Maine’s 10. The Wildcats stopped a two-game losing streak

“We haven’t been executing so we’ve been working on that,” Magarity said.

Barron’s team will be working on it today.

“The turnovers got us those are the momentum killers,” said Barron, who was pleased with some of the defense, including an emphasis on Frame inside.

But there were also lapses on defense. UNH would go on spurts, and the Black Bears could not counter. 

NOTES: Freshman forward Danielle Walczak took an elbow to the eye in practice Monday, shortening the Black Bears’ roster to nine. Forward Shareka Maner left the team for personal reasons, guard Amber Smith is out with a long-term illness and forwards Samantha Wheeler (concussion) and Ali Nalivaika (knee) are out for the season. … Rachel Burns of Gorham did not play. Her knee injuries have slowed her and she has played in only four games. … The Black Bears return to Alfond Arena on Saturday against Binghamton.

Staff Writer Kevin Thomas can be contacted at 791-6411 or at:

kthomas@pressherald.com

Twitter: KevinThomasPPH

 

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