WEST HAVEN, CONN. - The University of New Haven women's basketball team dropped their third straight game in a heartbreaking 58-59 loss to the Adelphi Panthers on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Two days after erasing a 15 point deficit to Stonehill, the Chargers once again battled back from double-digit points, tonight. Ultimately, the Chargers fell short as the loss now knocks New Haven down to 5-8 on the season, as New Haven continue their search for an NE10 win. Camryn DeBose (Wellington, Fla./Wellington Community) saw 40 minutes of action, finishing with 13 points, five rebounds and two assists. Once again DeBose dazzled on the defensive end, recording three steals and two blocks. A new face led the Chargers on offense, freshman forward Bianca Pendleton (Accokeek, Md./New Hope Academy). Pendleton dominated the paint, ending with 15 points on 6-8 shooting, 13 of which came in the second half. Junior forward Alyssa Stevenson (Watertown, N.Y./South Jefferson Central), who started in place of Deshaies, led the team on the glass, pulling down eight rebounds while putting up eight points. Gabrielle Stickle (Syracuse, N.Y./Jamesville-DeWitt) tallied seven points in the effort, as her only two made field goals came from beyond the arc. Margiona Bacaliu was held to one basket, a three-pointer in the first quarter, but finished with five points, four rebounds and three assists. Kameryn King (Old Saybrook, Conn./Mercy) was also held to one made field goal, however, ended with six points after going a perfect 4-4 from the line. 

"I could not be prouder of the team as I have been in the last two games," said head coach Debbie Buff. "I have never coached a team with as much adversity as this team and they are fighting harder than ever and playing with so much heart and grit. We told them after the game that the future culture of our program is bright."

The Panthers shot 23-65 (35.4%) from the field while being held to four made three-pointers out of 15 attempts. Despite trailing by 15 once again, the Chargers remained competitive, shooting 21-60 (35.0%) while shooting 4-16 from three. The Chargers made more free throws, going 12-17 (70.6%) from the line while the Panthers went 9-12 (75.0%). New Haven forced Adelphi into 19 turnovers, while totaling nine steals, in addition to four blocks. DeBose racked up three steals while Stickle and Briana Van Cleaf (Staten Island, N.Y./Notre Dame Academy) each tallied two steals. Of the four blocks in the game, DeBose was credited with two of them while Van Cleaf and Charlotte Basset both blocked one, as well. The Chargers outrebounded the Panthers 43-40, despite being outscored in the paint 34-28. Adelphi outscored the Chargers 15-9 on the fast break but New Haven scored more points off turnovers, 18-15. Both teams scored ten points stemming from second chance opportunities.

FIRST HALF

• DeBose led New Haven on offense in the first half, putting up nine points on three of six shooting, while making her only three-point attempt.
• Stickle went 2-3 from the field with both shots coming from beyond the arc.
• Stickle and Bacaliu connected on back-to-back three-pointers in the first quarter to bring the Chargers within one.
• Stevenson cleaned the glass in the half, grabbing seven rebounds, two of which were offensive.
• In addition to seven rebounds, Stevenson also put up four points.
• King and Pendleton each finished the first half with two points, while the former added two rebounds to her stats.
• DeBose, Bacaliu and King each recorded a steal while Van Cleaf was the only Charger to block a shot in the half. 
• Bacaliu led all scorers with three assists while DeBose followed with two.
• The Chargers trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half before heading into the break down eight.
• The Chargers were outscored 21-18 in the first quarter but were then outscored 14-9 in the second quarter.
• Adelphi shot 15-39 (38.5%) from the field in the half, while being held to 1-8 from three.
• The Chargers went 9-29 (31.0%) while going four of nine from three.
• The Panthers shot 4-6 from the line as opposed to the Chargers, who went 5-8.
• The Chargers were outscored 8-4 off turnovers and were outscored 28-16 in the paint.

SECOND HALF

• The second half of play was dominated by Pendleton in the paint, as she scored 13 points and grabbed three rebounds.
• DeBose did a little bit of everything in the second half, tallying four points, three rebounds and two steals.
• Stevenson also put up four points in the closing half while only grabbing one rebound.
• Van Cleaf led the Chargers on the glass, grabbing six rebounds while adding two points and two steals, as well.
• Bacaliu scored two points herself, while also pulling down three rebounds.
• A DeBose fast break score with 6:25 left in the game tied the game at 51 a piece.
• King's layup 30 seconds later would give the Charger's their first lead of the game.
• A pair of free throws with 4:30 left in the fourth quarter gave the Chargers a four point lead.
• Adelphi's Ty Hawkins's jumper with 5 second left in the game gave the Panthers a walk off win.
• Adelphi shot 8-26 (30.8%) from the field in the half, including three of seven from deep, while the Chargers went 12-31 (38.7%) while being held to 0-7 from three.
• The Panthers went 5-6 from the line, despite not taking a free throw in the fourth, as opposed to the Chargers who only went 7-9.
• Adelphi scored seven points off turnovers while the Chargers scored 14.
• The Chargers dominated in the paint during the second half, outscoring the Panthers, 20-12.
• The Chargers also outscored the Panthers, 6-4 on second chance opportunities and 8-3 on the fast break.

WHAT'S NEXT
The University of New Haven women's basketball team head to New Hampshire to take on the Saint Anselm Hawks. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 5:30 PM on Wednesday, Jan 19 at Stoutenburgh Gym.