Tartans Sweep Season Series with WashU After 76-70 Home Win

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon university women's basketball team swept the season series with Washington University in St. Louis for the first time since 1991 after the Tartans defeated the Bears on Sunday, February 16 by a 76-70 score. The Tartans are now 8-4 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play and 18-4 overall while WashU drops to 5-6 in conference play and 14-8 overall.

How It Happened

• WashU's Jessica Brooks hit three triples in the first quarter and the Bears led 19-8 after the first 10 minutes thanks in part to eight Tartan turnovers and a 3-of-8 showing from the floor by the home team.
• The Tartans turned it around in the second period, shooting 46.2% from the floor while holding the Bears to a 3-of-11 performance.
• Freshman Payton Baney scored the first basket of the second quarter, sending the Tartans on a 10-2 run against the Bears in the first three minutes.
• Junior Savannah Gibbs forced the first lead change with a layup assisted by senior Catherine Or. The Bears took the lead back to end the half 30-29.
• Or had four assists and four points in the second period to lead the Tartans while Baney had five points.
• There were three ties and five lead changes in the first five minutes of the third quarter with the final lead change coming on a pull up jump shot by Or to make it 40-39 in favor of the Tartans.
• Or's bucket fueled a 16-8 run by the Tartans to end the frame with Or recording 10 points.
• Three free throws from senior Isha Nambisan put the Tartans up 12 points at the six-minute mark.
• The Bears made it a one possession game with 31 seconds to go when Lexy Harris hit a jumper in the paint but senior Anisha Chintala sank one of two free throws on the next possession to give the Tartans a four-point cushion.
• After a missed shot by the Bears, Or drained a pair from the foul line to essentially seal the win.

Tartan Stats

• Or finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, making 11-of-12 from the free throw line.
• Chintala scored 17 points with 13 coming in the second half.
• Baney closed the game with 16 points and six rebounds.

Bear Stats

• Brooks led the team with 21 points and nine rebounds.
• Harris and Alyssa Hughes each scored 12 points, while Sidney Rogers scored 11 points and had four assists.

Notes

• The win gives the Tartans eight UAA victories for the seventh time and the first time since 2016 when the team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship.
• The Tartans maintain a two-game advantage for second place in the UAA while NYU is holding down the top spot with an 11-0 record.
• This is the sixth season in program history where the team has won at least 18 games and it's the first time since 2017 when the team won 21.

Up Next

The Tartans will travel to New York University on Friday, February 21. Tip off will be at 7:30 pm EST.