Sophomore guard Hanna Luburgh connected on 4-of-6 3-pointers before fouling out to lead the University of Akron’s women’s team with a career-high 21 points, and sophomore forward Carly Young added a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds as the Zips pounded Western Michigan (81-67 at Rhodes Arena on Saturday afternoon.
The Zips (11-14, 5-6 Mid-American Conference) overcame a litany of errors to come away with the win. Akron squandered an early 14-point lead in the first half, only to come back with a vengeance in the second.
When the Broncos t(6-18, 3-8) rimmed the lead to three points at halftime, it appeared that the Zips were on the verge of allowing an opportunity to slip away.
“We knew we were going to have to play a really good game today if we were going to beat them,” coach Jodi Kest said. “I don’t think it was our best performance, but I think you have to give Western Michigan some credit. I thought they were well prepared for us, but at the end I thought we had some great play.”
The Zips needed it after committing 18 turnovers in the first half.
“That was my frustration,” Kest said of the turnovers. “We ended that game at 27 [turnovers] so we only allowed nine in the second half. Again, you have to give Western Michigan credit for that. I thought they did a really good job in their preparation for the game.”
The Zips opened the game as if they wanted to drive the Broncos from the building.
Led by 13 points from Luburgh in the first seven minutes of the game, the Zips took control offensively. They played well defensively also, sealing off the inside and forcing the Broncos into a perimeter game.
Although the Broncos missed some early 3-point attempts, their perimeter shooting got them back in the game.
“They had some kids who could shoot them and shoot them deep and we talked about not having too many open 3s and they had a ton of open 3s,” Kest said.
With the Zips holding a 28-14 lead with a shade over eight minutes left in the half, Western Michigan made its move.
Julia Henson connected on two consecutive 3-pointers to cut the Akron lead to eight. Another 3-pointer from Maria Iaquaniello along with along with her layup, cut the Zips’ lead to three.
The Broncos finished the first half on an 18-8 run.
George M. Thomas can be reached at gmthomas@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Zips blog at http://zips.ohio.com. Follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/GeorgeThomasABJ and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
