The men’s basketball team held the University of Chicago without a field goal for a stretch of 12:31 in the second half en route to a 74-62 victory over the Maroons in both team’s University Athletic Association (UAA) opener Jan. 10 in Chicago.
The Bears shot 57.4 percent from the field in the victory and outrebounded the Maroons, 31-26. WUSTL, which leads the NCAA Division III in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.6), had 22 assists in the victory.
Junior Cameron Smith and freshman Dylan Richter had 13 points, while junior Aaron Thompson added 11 points on 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc. Senior Sean Wallis added nine points, four rebounds and a game-high 11 assists in the victory.
The Bears, ranked No. 3 overall, suffered their first loss of the season Dec. 20 to Elmhurst College, 82-75, in the championship game of the Bluejay Classic in Elmhurst, Ill. It was the final game before a 15-day layoff for the holiday break.
They bounced back Jan. 5 with a 68-55 win at Webster University. In that game, WUSTL shot 50.9 percent from the field while holding Webster to just 41.4 percent shooting. The Bears sank eight three-pointers in the win and held a 35-30 advantage on the boards. The victory over Webster was the Bears’ 73rd in a row when holding an opponent under 60 points.
WUSTL (11-1, 1-0 UAA) continues conference action at home at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16, against Case Western Reserve University in the WU Field House.
Women’s basketball win streak at five
The No. 25 women’s basketball team pushed its winning streak to five consecutive games with a dramatic 54-50 win at No. 21 University of Chicago in both team’s University Athletic Association (UAA) opener in Chicago Jan. 10.
Sophomore Kelsey Robb sunk a pair of free throws to break a 50-50 tie with 9.9 seconds remaining to lead WUSTL to the win. Robb led all scorers with a career-high 14 points and also pulled down seven rebounds.
The Bears’ stifling defense was pivotal in picking up the conference win, as it did not yield a field goal over the final 4:29 of the game and held Chicago to just 33.3 percent shooting.
The victory was the 525th of head coach Nancy Fahey’s career and the first for WUSTL at Chicago since Feb. 25, 2006.
On Jan. 5, the Bears defeated Webster University, 78-46, with senior Halsey Ward leading the way with 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from three-point range.
WUSTL (9-3, 1-0 UAA) resumes play at home at 6 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16, against Case Western Reserve University in the WU Field House.
Swimming and diving sweep Lindenwood
The men’s and women’s swim teams returned from the semester break to pick up wins over Lindenwood University at Millstone Pool Jan. 9.
The men defeated Lindenwood, 137-81, while the women’s squad picked up a 130-88 victory over the visiting Lions.
The meet was the first competition for the Bears since both teams placed second at the Wheaton Invitational Dec. 6.
Against Lindenwood, the WUSTL women took first in eight events, and the men’s team claimed the top spot in seven events.
Freshman Karina Stridh posted an NCAA provisional time of 53.10 in winning the 100-yard freestyle, the only Bear to eclipse an NCAA standard at the meet.