From NYU Athletics

The New York University women's basketball team returned to the court after a 15-day hiatus and battled to a 64-62 victory over Smith College on Saturday, December 30, at the Sportsplex in Manhattan.

The Violets (7-4) had not played since beating Rutgers University-Newark, 65-52, on December 15.

In a tight contest throughout (neither team led by more than eight points), NYU headed into the fourth quarter with a slim 48-46 advantage.

Annie Barrett's two free throws with eight minutes left, the first points of the quarter, provided the biggest lead for either team the rest of the way.

Smith (8-3) took a three-point lead, 62-59, with just under a minute left following Kennedy Guest-Pritch's putback.

Kaitlyn Read, who led all scorers with 25 points, hit two free throws with 40 seconds left to pull NYU within one.

After an errant three-point attempt by the Pioneers, the Violets called timeout with 14 seconds left and Read drove to the basket and was fouled with just six ticks remaining. She made the first, and after a Smith timeout, she hit the second.

"I know the other team is trying to ice me. But, I know that I just have to step up there and shoot my free throws like I've always done before," Read said. 

Following another Smith timeout, the inbounds went to Kennedy Guest-Pritch, who had her shot blocked by Kayla Patterson. Read again was fouled and made one more free throw with two seconds left.

"When you have a player like Kaitlyn, you want the ball in her hands," said Head Coach Lauren Hall-Gregory. "When you have one of the best players in the country you want her to have the basketball and make some decisions."

The ensuing inbounds pass was stolen by Janean Cuffee who ran out the clock.  

NYU had shown no early rust, jumping out to an 11-3 lead. However, the Pioneers pulled within 19-16 after the first quarter and took their initial lead while scoring the first 10 points of the second en route to a 37-31 halftime advantage. 

The Violets scored the first five points of the third quarter to pull within one, and eventually took a 44-43 lead on Cassidy Fontana's three-point play with 2:41 remaining. The Violets upped their lead to three points before settling for a 48-46 advantage heading into the eventful final quarter. 

"Ever since I've been here we've come back from the break refreshed and ready to play," Hall-Gregory offered. "They are excited to be back. I was impressed with the way they came out and played today." 

NOTABLE:

- Fontana finished with nine points, while Barrett and Patterson each had eight.

- Patterson finished with a team-high 14 rebounds. 

- Kennedy Guest-Pritch led Smith with 15 points and 11 rebounds.