NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Anh-Dao Tran (Webster, Mass./Holy Name) scored a game-high 20 points with nine assists to lead the University of New Haven women’s basketball team to a 73-57 win at Southern Connecticut State on Saturday afternoon. With the win over their Northeast-10 and crosstown rival, the Chargers clinch a spot in the Northeast-10 Championship Quarterfinals and the No. 6 seed overall in the tournament.
The Chargers (13-12, 12-9 NE-10) also completed their first home-and-home season sweep of SCSU since the 1999-2000 campaign and set a new program record with their 12th Northeast-10 win.
Tran netted 20 points for the fifth time in six games and matched her career high with nine helpers for the second consecutive game. The junior sharpshooter, who moved into ninth all-time at UNH with 292 career assists, also matched her career-best with six three-pointers. Briana Bradford (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) added 12 points for New Haven, while Aquillin Hayes (Harlem, N.Y./Wings Academy) hauled in a game-best 13 rebounds.
Ten student-athletes scored for the Chargers, who were sparked by 30 bench points. Ashley LeBlanc (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) led the reserves with eight points and five boards. New Haven knocked down 10 three-pointers, with Nikita Reddy (Germantown, Md./Germantown) sinking two and Bradford and Elizabeth Cruso (Westerly, R.I./Westerly) each knocking down one from distance in addition to Tran’s half-dozen treys.
After an early 7-7 tie, the Chargers broke the stalemate with a 14-2 run to take a lead they would not relinquish at 21-9 with 10:44 to go in the opening period. The margin shrank back to a single possession at 23-20 before five straight points from Bradford started a 15-6 spurt for New Haven. Tran’s fourth three-pointer of the period came with under three seconds to go and capped the run with the Chargers taking a 38-26 lead into the intermission.
New Haven broke the game open with a 14-0 run to start the second half. The Chargers defense held the Owls to 0-for-3 shooting from the field and forced eight turnovers over the first four minutes en route to doubling-up SCSU, 52-26, with 15:56 to go. New Haven led by as many as 30 points and rolled to a 73-57 victory.
The Chargers had an edge on the glass, 47-46, and won the turnover battle, 23-16, with a 22-10 advantage in points-off-giveaways.
Amani Lightbourne had a team-high 15 points for Southern Connecticut State (7-17, 4-17 NE-10).
The Chargers wrap up the regular season on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at Charger Gymnasium with a 5:30 p.m. visit from Saint Rose.
