DURHAM — Picked to finish first in the America East Conference this season, the University of New Hampshire women’s basketball team didn’t play like it until the second half of Monday’s matinee against UMass Lowell.
Trailing by nine at the end of the first quarter and three at halftime, the Wildcats finally found their groove upon returning from the locker room and cruised the rest of the way to a 66-45 win at Lundholm Gym.
“We have a target on our back this year as No. 1,” said UNH senior forward Olivia Healy. “It’s hard to kind of get into a rhythm in the beginning, maybe. Everyone is going to bring us their best game, so we have to bring our best game every game. (We’ve) played some really tough teams, and every team coming up is going to be tough.”
Carlie Pogue led the Wildcats with 15 points — her jumper early in the fourth quarter sparking a 10-0 run that put the game away.
“I kept telling them, we have to move the ball inside-out, we have to get to the paint, and we didn’t,” said UNH coach Maureen Magarity, whose team improved to 12-5 overall and 3-1 in the conference. “In the second half, we did a much better job of that. And I thought our defense really picked up.”
Lowell (3-14, 0-4) shot out to a 17-8 lead in the first quarter. Paula Lopez — who, along with Linda Svenne and Oda Shackelford scored 10 points apiece for the River Hawks — hit a 3-pointer with 1:45 left in the frame to give Lowell its biggest lead of the afternoon, 17-6.
“I loved the fight that we had in the first half, especially the first quarter,” Lowell coach Jenerrie Harris said. “UNH is such a good team; they’re mentally tough. ... I thought our young crew did a decent job (matching them), we just have to learn to do that a little more consistently.”
A jumper by Brianna Rudolph and a 3 by Svenne to open the second half put the visitors up 30-22, and that’s where UNH went to work. A Healy 3-pointer and a jumper by Brittni Lai sparked a 10-0 run, to which Lai contributed another jumper and a pair of free throws.
A 3-pointer by Olivia Healy with 5:18 to go put UNH up 32-30, its first lead of the night. The Wildcats did not trail again.
“Everyone just stepped it up in the second half,” Lai said. “We played really intense defense and were able to get fast breaks. I think that’s what did it.”
Healy had 13 points and Lai had 11. Kat Fogarty scored eight points to go with nine rebounds.
UNH returns to action on Thursday at Vermont.