Bengals Start Strong in Season Opener but Fall 73-55 to DePaul :: ISU Holds DePaul to a Six-Point Lead at the Half

Nov. 15, 2008

Albuquerque, NM--The Bengals came out strong playing well in the first 25 minutes of their season opener holding DePaul to a six point lead at the half, but a strong second half for DePaul clinched the victory in their favor as Idaho State fell 73-55 in Albuquerque, New Mexico at the Pit in the first game of the Travels Tip-Off Tournament. DePaul improves to 1-0 for the season while the Bengals start the season 0-1.

"Playing well against a Big East team in the first half shows we have a chance of being a good team," said head coach Seton Sobolewski. "Now it's putting two halves together and playing good defense."

Sophomore Chelsea Pickering landed a jumper to start off the game, but DePaul's Natasha Williams responded with two lay-ups to give the Blue Demons the lead which they would not relent. ISU cut it to a three-point game in the first, when sophomore Verity Peets sank two free-throws at 3:27 left in the first half to put ISU behind by just three points at 30-27. The Bengals neutralized the inside game to hold DePaul to a six point lead (36-30) at the half, but could not overcome. ISU had a difficult time sinking their shots and couldn't get into a rhythm as the Bengals were 7-for-24 for 29.2 percent at the field, which helped compound DePaul's run in the second period.

Junior Oana Iacovita played aggressively posting the team-high 11 points as she was 4-for-6 from the field. She also netted three free throws from four attempts. Iacovita also pulled down five defensive rebounds for her total and had two steals and a blocked shot. Pickering had a solid defensive game as she did an excellent job of reducing DePaul's Deirde Naughton to eight points. Naughton scored 21 and 22 points in DePauls exhibition games against Chicago and Saint Xavier respectively. Pickering also pulled down the team-high six rebounds and posted two steals.

Three Bengals scored eight points each from seniors Michelle Grohs and Jenna Brown as well as junior Devin Diehl. Grohs was 3-for-5 in the field sinking her only three point attempt. Brown was 2-for-6 from the field and was 3-for-4 at the line. The Bengals were also producing off the Bench as 17 points could be attributed in that direction. Post players Cara Lambert and Verity Peets made an impact on the team as each posted seven points and pulled down six rebounds between them.

DePaul's Natasha Williams led the team in the second half posting 10 of her 16 points for the game. Williams also pulled down five total rebounds and blocked two shots. She was 7-for-11 from the field. The Blue Demons had a strong rebounding night out-rebounding the Bengals 48-34, while DPU had 24 rebounds in each half.

The Bengals will continue in the round-robin Travelers Tip-Off Tournament against host New Mexico at 7 p.m. in the Pit at Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Notes: The Bengals were 34 percent over the course of the game from the field, recording a 37.9 percent in the first period ... ISU reduced DePaul to just 1-of-8 behind the arc for a 12.5 percent, down from 33.3 percent in the first ... The +18 point victory for DePaul was the lowest margin of victory if compared with DePaul exhibition games of +56 and +26 against Chicago and Saint Xavier's comparatively ... The Bengals posted a 60 percent free throw percentage.