The Emory University Women's Basketball Team ran its home winning streak to five games on Friday night, as the Eagles picked up a 67-61 win over Brandeis University in conference action at the Woodruff Physical Education Center.
The win raised Emory's season record to 11-8 on the year, including a 3-5 mark in University Athletic Association games. Brandeis dropped to 10-9, with a 2-6 UAA record.
Brandeis took the early advantage in the game, jumping out to a 7-2 lead four minutes into the game. However, the Eagles would go on a 14-7 run of their own over the next five minutes of action, taking a 16-12 lead with 11:23 to play in the first on a three-pointer by sophomore Fran Sweeney.
After Brandeis tied the game on back-to-back layups, Emory went on another big run, this time a 12-0 spurt that put the Eagles up 28-16 with 7:43 remaining in the half. Emory led by as many as 13 points in the frame, and ended the first period with a 42-31 advantage.
The Eagles shot five-for-nine from long range in the first half, and were led offensively by junior Kadijah Sayyid's 12 points. Defensively, Emory forced 16 Brandeis turnovers in the half, while surrendering the ball just five times themselves.
The Judges opened the second half on an 8-2 run, cutting the Eagles' lead down to four, and eventually grabbed a two-point lead, 52-50, on a layup by Heather Cain with 11:19 left to play. Once again, Emory responded with a run of its own, outscoring Brandeis 10-0 over the next six minutes of action to regain an eight-point lead, 60-52 with 5:11 remaining in the game.
The Eagles would lead the rest of the way, despite the Judges cutting the lead to two points with 31 seconds left on a layup by Olivia Shaw. The Judges would foul, and despite missing both free throws, the Eagles received a key offensive rebound by sophomore Michelle Bevan to keep possession. Emory would shoot five-for-six from the charity stripe the rest of the way to cement the win.
Sayyid finished with a game-high 16 points, while Bevan added 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Sweeney contributed with 11 points off the bench and junior Ilene Tsao chipped in with 10 points to round out the Eagles' double-digit scorers.
Frankie Pinto led all Brandeis scorers with 14 points on Friday night.
The Eagles will continue their four-game home stand on Sunday, February 8th, when the squad plays host to conference opponent and nationally eighth-ranked New York University at 2:00 pm at the WoodPEC.