NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – The TCNJ women's basketball team used a sizzling shooting performance to lead for much of the afternoon against Rhode Island College before the Anchorwomen used a big run to end the third quarter to separate for a 78-68 victory in the opening round of Smith's Tyler Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday.

Sydney Blum poured in a career-high 21 points on 8-of-10 from the field and Izzy Leazier added 16 of her own, missing just one of her seven tries from the floor, to lead four players in double figures for the Lions (1-1), who will take on New England in Sunday's consolation game.

TCNJ was 53.7 percent from the field and went a remarkable 10-for-16 (62.5 percent) from 3-point range, but was unable to contain a prolific RIC offense that finished at a 60-percent clip overall (33-for-55) and went 9-for-11 in the fourth quarter.

The Lions fell into a pair of early six-point holes before catching fire in the later stages of the first quarter. They took their first lead (14-13) on a bucket by Kaitlyn Deiter at the 2:43 mark, part of an 8-0 burst that ended with a basket by Nina Branchizio, who splashed a triple on the last possession of the period to extend TCNJ's advantage to 21-15.

The Lions twice led by eight in the second stanza but the Anchorwomen stayed within arm's length, eventually getting to within 34-32 at the break.

TCNJ threatened to pull away in the third, when back-to-back 3-pointers by Blum and Julia Setaro made it 40-34. Another triple by Blum restored a six-point spread (43-37), and the Lions still held a 48-43 edge after a pair of Branchizio free throws at the 3:51 mark.

The game turned over the rest of the period, when RIC scored on five straight trips and six of its last seven possessions, punctuated by a three-point play from Jayda Bing to beat the buzzer and send the Anchorwomen into the fourth with a 56-48 lead as the Lions went scoreless following Branchizio's freebies.

Trailing by 10 with 7:25 to go, Leazier ignited a 7-0 spurt with a driving layup as Blum polished off the run with a trey that sliced the RIC lead to 65-62. Leazier connected on a pair at the line to make it 68-64 at the 4:26 mark, but the Anchorwomen scored the next 10 points to put the game on ice.

Madison Medbury netted 18 points to lead four players in double figures for the Anchorwomen, who received votes in the preseason D3hoops.com national poll and went 23-6 with an NCAA Tournament appearance last season. RIC controlled the interior to the tune of a 54-24 paint points surplus.

TCNJ countered with its long-range exploits as Blum made 4 of 5 from beyond the arc and Leazier, Branchizio, and Setaro added a pair of triples each. Blum collected a team-leading seven rebounds and Leazier corralled five.

Branchizio finished with 12 points and Setaro chipped in 10.