WORCESTER, Mass.—Junior Giovanna Pickering (Hull, Mass.) led three players in double figures with 12 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists as visiting Babson College defeated WPI, 62-51, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) women's basketball action on Wednesday night at Harrington Auditorium.
With its ninth straight victory, Babson moves to 17-5 overall and takes over sole possession of first place in the conference standings at 13-1. WPI, which had its 18-game winning streak snapped, drops to 20-2 overall and 12-1 in the NEWMAC.
Senior Linnett Graber (Roseland, N.J.) scored eight of her 11 points in the second half, and also grabbed seven boards, while classmate Marissa Cicchetti (Mansfield, Mass.) knocked down three three-pointers and also scored 11 points for the Beavers. Junior Taylor Russell (Braintree, Mass.) came off the bench to score eight points and senior Kristen Ferola (Amherst, Mass.) chipped in with six points to go along with a game-high eight rebounds and three assists.
Sophomore Ama Biney (Worcester, Mass.) led all scorers with 14 points to lead the Engineers, who are ranked 11th in the first NCAA regional rankings.
Trailing 9-7 midway through the first quarter, Babson ripped off a 9-0 run to take a 16-9 lead on a three-point play by sophomore Brenna LeGacy (Attleboro, Mass.) with 1:20 to go in the stanza. WPI pulled even on a Biney jumper early in the second quarter, but the Beavers followed with nine straight points to take a 25-16 edge on a jumper by Russell at the 4:32 mark. The Green and White led by as many as nine late in the period and took a 29-21 lead into the locker room.
Cicchetti knocked down a pair of triples to open the third quarter and the Green and White extended its advantage to 40-26 on a three-point play by first-year Elizabeth Lane (Skaneateles, N.Y.) with 4:17 to go in the frame. The Engineers closed within nine twice late in the third and again early in the fourth, but Babson scored on five of its next six possessions to take its biggest lead of the night at 54-37 on a jumper by Ferola with 6:56 remaining in the contest.
WPI scored nine straight points to pull within 54-46 on a pair of free throws by junior Priscilla Dunphy (Barrington, R.I.) with 3:17 to go, but Pickering converted a three-point play a minute later give the Beavers a 57-46 edge. Babson then went 5-of-6 at the line over the final 1:19 to ice the win.
The Green and White shot 38.7 percent (24-of-62) from the floor, outscored the Engineers 20-10 in the paint and finished with a 48-36 advantage on the glass.
WPI was held to a season-low 31.6 percent (18-of-57) shooting and finished just 4-of-15 from beyond the arc.
Babson returns to action on Friday when it hosts Bates at 7 p.m., while the Engineers travel to Wheaton at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
GAME NOTES
• The Beavers are 32-21 all-time against WPI and have won 15 of the last 16 in the series going back to 2009.
• Babson is just the second team this season to score more than 60 points against the Engineers, who entered the night with the nation's second-ranked scoring defense.
• The Green and White is 13-0 this season and has won 15 straight games when reaching the 60-point mark.
• The Beavers are 14-0 on the year when at least three players reach double figures.