EWING, N.J. - The TCNJ women's basketball team hosted Kean in NJAC action Saturday afternoon, using a big first quarter to secure a 75-62 win and complete the regular-season sweep of the Cougars.
Five players eclipsed double figures in scoring in the victory, with the Lions racking up 19 assists in one of their best offensive showings of the season.
 
Nina Branchizio paced TCNJ's (13-5, 9-2 NJAC) quintet of double digit scorers with her game-high 15, followed closely by Katie Fricker (14), Jacelyn Feit (13), Grace Kowalski (12), and Arianna McCleod (10). Fricker and Feit shared the team lead in rebounds with seven apiece, with Fricker also tallying a career-best six helpers.
 
The Lions set the tone early in a game in which they never trailed, outscoring Kean 25-13 in the opening frame. The scored sat level at five following a pair of 5-0 runs from both sides before a Feit lay-in kickstarted a 10-0 TCNJ run capped off by the first of five Branchizio triples on the night to go in front 15-5. The Lions and Cougars traded buckets over the ensuing three minutes, with a free throw from Olivia Magee sending TCNJ into the first break up 25-13.
 
The lead held at 12 for much of the second quarter, with the Lions getting buckets from Maya Hourigan-Hutton, Kowalski, Branchizio, and Feit, but a 6-0 burst by Kean's Brittany Graff in the final minute trimmed the Lions' lead to just six at 41-35 at halftime.
 
The Cougars fought themselves back into things in the second half, getting as close as three (46-43) in the third quarter and five (62-57) in the fourth before a 9-2 run capped off by Branchizio's season-best fifth 3-pointer made it a double-digit lead for good. Perfect trips to the charity stripe by Feit and Fricker tied the Lions' largest lead of the day at 15, with a late Cougar layup wrapping up the 75-62 win and regular season sweep.
 
FOR THE FOES

• Brittany Graff tied Branchizio with a game-high 15 points, adding six rebounds.
• Maddison Vaughn secured a 13-point, 14-rebound double double.
• Erika Mercedes nearly registered her own double double, scoring 14 points with nine rebounds.

STANDOUT LIONS

• Fricker did it all for the Lions, scoring 14 points with seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.
• In addition to her game-high 15 points, Branchizio added a season-best four assists.
• Kowalski also stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, four rebounds, five assists and three thefts.
• In a season-high 26 minutes, Feit tallied 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Despite appearing in only two games the graduate student now shares the team lead for total blocks this season (4).
• McCleod got into double figures for the third straight game and hit multiple threes for the fourth consecutive game.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• TCNJ shot 41.5% from the field and 37.9% from 3-point territory while the Cougars shot just 37.7% overall and 26.7% from beyond the arc.
• The Lions turned 15 Kean turnovers into 18 points on the other end.
• TCNJ's bench once again proved vital in the win, outscoring the Cougars' 21-7 paced by Fiet's 13.
• The Lions' 19 assists were their most in an NJAC game this season and most since their November 16 matchup against Framingham State.

UP NEXT

• The Lions are back on the road to take on Stockton Wednesday, Jan. 29. Opening tip is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.