Ryles & Benjamin Combine for 45; Firebirds Drop Conference Match Up to Wildcats

AMHERST, N.Y. -The University of the District of Columbia's women's basketball team fell to Daemen University 91-63, in an important conference match up, Sunday afternoon at the Lumsden Gymnasium. The Firebirds fell to 7-5 in conference play which keeps them in fourth place in the standings but the Wildcats improve to 9-3 to secure sole possession of second place.

Destiny Ryles led all scorers with 28 points and grabbed team-highs of six rebounds and five steals. Kensley Benjamin knocked down 17 points going 7-12 from the field and 3-6 from behind the arc. Latavia Jackson also added nine points, her first single digit scoring game since November 12th, when they faced off against Goldey-Beacom College.

It was a tough first half for the Firebirds as they shot 37.5% from the field while the Wildcats shot at 68.8%. The Wildcat offense didn't seem to miss a shot in the first quarter scoring 30 points, almost double that of UDC's. They almost replicated that performance in the second quarter leading by 25 going into half-time. Benjamin and Ryles combined for 26 of the Firebirds 31 points but the Firebirds struggled off the boards picking up only seven rebounds compared to Daemen's 23.

The third quarter proved to be UDC's best quarter as a 14-0 run over four minutes saw the Firebirds cut the deficit down to 14. After a back and forth of traded buckets the Firebirds would close out the quarter with a last second long range chuck up by Ryles that found it's way inside the net, making it a 15 point game going into the last stretch.

The fourth quarter saw another series of struggles for UDC, as two of their starting forwards fouled out (Aiyana Ellis and Tori Williams). They scored only nine points split between Benjamin, Jackson and Halia Ellis while the Wildcats ended with 22.

UDC shot at 38.1% from the field compared to the Wildcats 58.3%. The boards is where Daemen managed to do a lot damage pulling down 48, while the Firebirds grabbed just 18. UDC forced 18 turnovers, while turning the ball over just nine times, and was able to convert more points off those TO's. Daemen's bench proved deep and lethal as they contributed 40 points, as Benjamin accounted for all 17 bench points.

Next Up, UDC (12-11, 7-5 ECC) is back home on Wednesday evening, hosting Molloy University at the E.B Henderson Sports Complex Gymnasium. Tip-off time is set for 5:30PM.