Sometimes it takes a strong individual effort to pull a team out of a funk, and that's exactly what Ashley King-Bischof '07 provided Tuesday night for the women's basketball team. By pouring in a career-best 29 points, King-Bischof helped halt the women's basketball team's season-opening losing streak at three games during a 70-63 victory over Sacred Heart University.
"It's definitely my career high at Brown and I think it's more than I ever scored in high school," King-Bischof said. "I think we're calling it a lifetime high."
Also over the break, Brown dropped two games during the University of Maine Thanksgiving Tournament to fall to 1-5 on the season. King-Bischof had 17 points in a 62-51 loss to Maine on Friday and five more in a 73-49 loss to St. John's University the following day.
King-Bischof attributed the losses in part to the Bears' relative inexperience compared to previous years. Brown graduated four seniors from last season's squad, which shared the Ivy League title, and has struggled to replace the nearly 30 points per game provided by Ivy League Player of the Year Sarah Hayes '06 and second team All-Ivy performer Colleen Kelly '06.
"Two-thirds of the team are underclassmen right now ... they're very athletic, they work really hard and they're all good players," King-Bischof said. "But they're still learning how to play at a Division I level, and we're still learning how to play as a team."
King-Bischof set a good example for the younger players against Sacred Heart. The guard averaged 7.1 points per game last season, but she had already scored that many with just five minutes left to play in the first half. Still, the slow-starting Bears found themselves trailing by as many as 10 points early on.
With 7:30 left in the first half, Sacred Heart led 20-10, but Brown responded with an 18-8 run over the next six minutes to tie the game. Guard Christina Johnson '10 kicked things off with a jump shot assisted by Courtney Lee '10. King-Bischof then converted two layups and a free throw to give Brown its first lead of the game at the five-minute mark.
The lead exchanged hands for the rest of the half until the Pioneers' Lisa Moray stole the ball from guard Lena McAfee '07 and hit a three-pointer for a 31-28 halftime lead. The deficit marked the fourth straight game in which Brown had trailed entering the break, a streak that stands at six following the Maine tournament.
Despite finding itself behind at the half, Brown came out of the gate strong to start the second half, as King-Bischof and Herald Sports Staff Writer Megan McCahill '09 both hit three pointers. Sacred Heart held off the Bears until there were just 10 minutes left in the game, when a jumper by King-Bischof fell to give Bruno a 52-50 advantage. Sacred Heart, however, struck right back and built a four-point cushion.
That's when King-Bischof took over. Over the course of two minutes, she sank another jumper, grabbed a defensive rebound and converted a layup at the other end. She then fed McCahill for a three pointer to give Brown a 62-61 advantage. King-Bischof's two free throws with 53 seconds left helped secure the win.
"I was just happy with the win," King-Bischof said. "It was nice to score that many because we finally found some success and we haven't had a lot of success lately. We were a little down on ourselves but we finally played the way we know we are capable of."
McAfee, McCahill and Ashley Alexander '10 chipped in eight points apiece, and Alexander added nine rebounds and two steals in the win. King-Bischof also hauled in eight boards. Brown made 29 of its 60 shots from the field and recorded 18 assists on the night.
The Bears struggled to duplicate Tuesday's performance over the weekend. The team shot only 29 percent against both Maine and St. John's, posting almost identical 19-for-66 and 19-for-65 efforts.
On its home floor Nov. 25, Maine jumped out to an early 13-4 lead and never looked back. The lead ballooned to as many as 17 at 31-14 before Brown closed to within 33-21 at the break. In the second half, Brown trailed by 19 early on and never really threatened as Maine cruised to the 11-point victory.
A similar story unfolded the following day against the Red Storm. Brown trailed by 17 at the half, and St. John's broke open the second with a 9-2 run to prevent a comeback.
A trio of underclassmen led Brown in the game. Lee, Shae Fitzpatrick '10 and Catherine Schaper '09 had 12, 10 and 11 points, respectively.
The Bears return to action on Tuesday night when Marist College visits the Pizzitola Center. The Red Foxes beat Brown 67-46 last season and were a 14th seed in the NCAA tournament, in which they lost to the University of Georgia.
