SCRANTON, Pa. - Junior forward Makenzie Mason (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) led three double-digit scorers on the night for The University of Scranton women's basketball team with 17 points, as the Lady Royals once again used a strong defensive effort to dominate visiting Moravian, 72-45, on Wednesday night in Landmark Conference play inside the John Long Center.
With the win, the Lady Royals (who are ranked third in the D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll and fourth in the WBCA Top 25), remained unbeaten on the year, moving to 14-0 overall and 3-0 in the Landmark Conference. Moravian fell to 10-4 and 2-1 in the Landmark with the loss.
Things started off slow for both teams in the first three minutes or so of the contest, as the first basket of the game didn't come until there was almost seven minutes left in the first period.
But, that first basket was scored by Scranton, and once the Lady Royals took a lead in the game, they never relinquished it, eventually opening a 13-4 edge on the visiting Greyhounds with four minutes left in the quarter.
To end the quarter, Scranton continued to flex their muscles on the defensive end, not allowing Moravian to hit double digits in the first 10 minutes, as the Lady Royals opened a double-digit lead at 17-7 at the end of one.
It was more of the same in the second quarter, as Scranton allowed just eight points. The Lady Royals added 11 to open a 28-15 lead entering halftime, as Scranton held Moravian to 19.4 percent shooting from the floor in the first 20 minutes of regulation (6-of-31) and forced seven turnovers.
Up by 13 entering the second half, the Lady Royals put Moravian away for the night to start the third quarter, as a 12-3 run extended Scranton's lead out to an insurmountable 21-point margin at 40-19.
The closest Moravian came the rest of the night to the Scranton lead was 14 points (on two separate occasions), as the Lady Royals rolled down the stretch to their 10th straight win by double figures overall, and the 13th such win on the 2018-19 season.
Overall, Mason led the Lady Royals in scoring for the sixth time on the season in her 17-point night. She also added eight rebounds, dished out five assists, and blocked three shots in the victory, as well.
Elsewhere, junior Sofia Recupero (Whitestone, N.Y./Saint Francis Prep) and Emily Sheehan (Dunmore, Pa./Dunmore) added 12 points, apiece. Both players pulled down five rebounds, apiece, as well, as Sheehan ended the game with three steals. Rounding out the top scorers for Scranton was freshman Danielle McCurdy (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Carroll), who ended with eight points and three blocks.
But, once again, the Lady Royals were absolutely dominant all night long on defense, as they held Moravian to a season-low 45 points on just 23.7 percent shooting from the floor overall (14-of-59). The Lady Royals forced 17 turnovers, blocked seven shots, and held Moravian junior guard Maddie Capuano to 13 points, well below her season average of 22.2 points (which led the Landmark Conference).
It was also the fifth straight game in which Scranton did not trail at any point throughout regulation. Scranton last faced a deficit in a match-up with Capital on Dec. 16.
The University of Scranton women's basketball team returns to action on Saturday, as they host Catholic in a Landmark Conference matchup inside the Long Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
--LADY ROYALS--