The women’s basketball team ended their season on Saturday losing to New York University 70-56 at home, after losing to the University of Chicago 63-50 last Sunday. With the loss on Saturday, the Judges finish the season with a 12-13 record overall and 5-9 record in University Athletic Association play. 

Judges 56, NYU 70

Before the game, the team honored the three seniors on the team: guard Heather Cain ’16, guard Niki Laskaris ’16 and forward Ceara McNamara ’16. 

Both teams stayed relatively even with one another in the first quarter. Brandeis led for most of the quarter, thanks to six points from forward Maria Jackson ’17. Jackson also added four rebounds and one steal in the quarter. The Judges led 12-7 late in the quarter but NYU went on a 9-3 run to lead 16-15 at the end of the first quarter after a pair of free throws from sophomore guard Riley Wurtz.

In the second quarter, Laskaris led the way for the Judges, scoring the team’s first nine points. NYU led 35-31 late in the quarter, but a layup from guard Kyla Gabriel ’17 with three seconds left in the quarter cut the deficit to two points at 35-33.

The Violets took control of the game in the third quarter, scoring 20 points and holding the Judges to just 12 points. The Judges made only one field goal in the final 6:16 of the third quarter, and NYU went on an 11-0 run to take a 57-45 lead into the fourth quarter. 

Despite five fourth-quarter points from guard Noel Hodges ’18, the Judges could only get to within 10 points in the final period. 

For the game, the Judges shot 44.2 percent from the field, while NYU shot 49.1 percent. 

Laskaris led the Judges with a team-high 15 points to go along with four rebounds and two assists. Jackson tallied a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. The bench for Brandeis outscored NYU’s bench 25-10 but the Judges committed 24 turnovers compared to 15 for the Violets. 

Judges 50, Chicago 63

Brandeis fell behind early in this game, shooting 1-of-10 from the field in the first quarter, and trailed 14-4 at the end of the period.

They got back on track in the second quarter, starting off the quarter on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 14-11. The Maroons then increased the lead to 20-13, but the Judges followed suit with a 7-1 run highlighted by a crucial and-one from guard Frankie Pinto ’17. Chicago led at halftime, though, 28-22.

The Maroons led by as much as 13 points in the third quarter with 3:13 remaining in the period and held a 49-38 lead heading into the fourth. 

The Judges started off the quarter on a quick 4-0 run to get to within seven points of the Maroons but could not get closer than that. Cainled the judges with 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and forward Sydney Sodine ’17 contributed with 10 points, four rebounds and one assist. The Maroons shot 48.9 percent from the field and limited the Judges to just 29.1 percent shooting. Although Brandeis outrebounded Chicago 39-28, the Maroons led in points in the paint 24-14. 

The Judges finished the season with an overall record of 12-13, a slight decline from their previous season's record of 16-12. However, their mediocre conference record of 5-9 matched that of last year's regular season conference record

Brandeis took charge in the first weeks of February, winning three games in a row. In that span, the Judges were able to close out a tough contest against a formidable Rochester University squad. 

Yet the team was unable to close out their season, falling in their last four games by double-digits in each. 

After the game, Gabriel lamented on the team's loss and overall season, saying, "Overall, I think we had a positive season. Unfortunately, a few early losses and injuries hurt us. I am excited to see how we grow next season. I think we will be a formidable team, but we have some big shoes to fill!"

The Judges will look to fill the shoes of Laskaris and Cain, both top scorers for the team. Cain averaged 9.2 per contest this year, while Laskaris poured in another 6.2 points per game. 

Cain also contributed a solid 3.7 rebounds per game to help the Judges gain ground inside the paint. 

Forwards Emma Curnin ’19 and Joelle MarkAnthony ’19 will vie for the secondary forward position once McNamara leaves after the regular season. 

The first-years will have to prove their strength and increase efficiency on the court in order to have an meaningful impact come next season during the winter.