From University of Chicago Athletics

Crisp passing and three-point shooting lifted the University of Chicago women's basketball team to a 76-66 win at University of Rochester on Friday.

The Maroons won their ninth-straight game to improve to 15-6 overall and 9-1 in the University Athletic Association (UAA). The Yellowjackets dropped to 12-9 and 4-6 in the UAA.

Both sides kept pace with each other for the opening eight minutes of the game. With the game tied at 12-12, the Maroons got on a roll and outscored the Yellowjackets 19-3 over the next four minutes. Junior guard Caitlin Moore swished a pair of threes while senior forwards Claire Devaney and Hannah Ballard tallied five points each during the run.

Senior forward Ellie Greiner made a trey to give UChicago its biggest lead of the half at 37-18. The three-point arc was kind to the Maroons, who made 7 of 12 from long distance in the half. The visitors took a 44-29 lead while shooting 48.4 percent from the field. Devaney provided plenty of offense with 14 points.

A three by senior forward Ali Shaw started the second half and the Maroons soon extended their lead to 20 points. UChicago kept its lead between 12 and 17 points for most of the half and weathered any comeback attempts from Rochester. The Yellowjackets pulled down a heap of offensive rebounds in the game (21) and outrebounded the Maroons overall 51-42.

However, UChicago kept its lead in double digits and held Rochester to only 29.0 percent on field goals for the game. This is the fourth opponent this year that has shot less than 30 percent against the Maroons. UChicago's posts did particularly good job blocking shots, with Ballard and Greiner combining for seven of the team's season-high nine blocks.

Ball movement led to 22 assists on 24 field goals by UChicago, which is the fifth time that the team has recorded at least 20 assists this season. Overall, the Maroons made 50 percent from three-point range (11 of 22). The visitors turned the ball over 19 times compared to 15 turnovers by the home team.

UChicago Team Stats & Leaders
Field-goal Percentage – 43.6 percent (24-55)
Three-point Percentage – 50.0 percent (11-22)
Free-throw Percentage – 63.0 percent (17-27)
Claire Devaney (Forward, Sr.) – 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals
Hannah Ballard (Forward, Sr.) – 10 points, 4 blocks, 4 rebounds
Caitlin Moore (Guard, Jr.) – 10 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists

Rochester Team Stats & Leaders
Field-goal Percentage – 29.0 percent (20-69)
Three-point Percentage – 28.6 percent (4-14)
Free-throw Percentage – 66.7 percent (22-33)
Brynn Lauer – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists
Alexandra Leslie – 11 points, 11 rebounds