No. 7 Delaware women beat Old Dominion 74-54

Published March 09, 2012

| Associated Press

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. – Elena Delle Donne had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 7 Delaware defeated Old Dominion 74-54 Friday to move into the semifinals of the Colonial Athletic Association women's tournament.

Trumae Lucas scored 14 on 7-for-9 shooting, and Lauren Carra and Jocelyn Bailey had 12 points apiece to help the Blue Hens earn their 18th consecutive victory. Unbeaten in conference play during the regular season, Delaware is seeking its first CAA tournament title.

The Blue Hens will face either Hofstra or North Carolina-Wilmington in Saturday's semifinal round.

Jackie Cook scored 17 for Old Dominion (11-21). It was the second straight season in which Delaware eliminated the Lady Monarchs in the quarterfinals. Before that, ODU was 18-0 in the quarterfinal round.

Delle Donne, the leading scorer in the NCAA with a 28.3 average, went 8 for 17 from the field and had five assists. The 6-foot-5 junior also contributed three blocks shots and two steals.

Delaware led 51-40 before Delle Donne made a three-point play for a 14-point cushion with 13:51 left. Her baseline jumper with 12:12 to go made it 58-42, and soon after that she took a seat on the bench while the reserves finished up.

Delle Donne and Carra each had 12 points, and the Blue Hens committed only two turnovers en route to a 39-29 halftime lead.

JoNiquia Guilford hit a short jumper off the opening tap for ODU, but that would be the Monarchs' only lead.

Carra made a 3-pointer and a jumper to spark an 11-2 run that included two baskets by Lucas and a short jumper by Delle Donne off her own offensive rebound. Those would be Delle Donne's only points over the first six minutes, but that didn't prevent Delaware from moving comfortably in front.

Two free throws by Carra made it 20-10 with 12:08 left in the half, at which point Hens coach Tina Martin gave Delle Donne a rest — for less than a minute. Upon her return, Delle Donne grabbed a rebound on the defensive end, drove the length of the court, was fouled and made two free throws.

After the Monarchs missed on the other end, Delle Donne drilled a 3-pointer to up the margin to 13 points.

URL

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/03/09/no-7-delaware-women-beat-old-dominion-74-54/