OLD WESTBURY, NY – The SUNY Old Westbury women's basketball team was ready to go and took down the St. Joseph's University-Brooklyn Bears by a final score of 67-55.
 
The Panthers looked good from the opening tip and had a strong game from start to finish. 
 
The game got going with the Bears taking the first points, but the Panthers would respond by putting up the next five points. The Panthers first points of the night came from MaLaura Olivier who knocked down a three-pointer.
 
The scoring was plentiful for both sides as each team continued to add on the points with the score at the end of the first quarter being 21-18 in favor of the Panthers. 
 
In the second quarter, the Panthers really began to open the gap. Old Westbury scored six more points than the Bears and ended the first half with the lead by a margin of nine points. The score at the midway point was 37-28, Panthers.
 
Coming out of the break, the OW continued to hit shots. The team found themselves with their largest lead to this point in the game at the eight-minute mark of the third quarter as they led the Bears by 11 points. 
 
The Panthers would find their largest lead towards the second half of the final quarter as they led the Bears 67-53 and a 14-point margin. The Bears had two players foul out, leaving them with only four players on the court in the final minute. The Bears would hit a layup in the final 10 seconds to make the final score 67-55. The Panthers claimed their second win of the season in this matchup against their Skyline Conference rival. 
 
Continuing her impressive week, MaLaura Olivier led the Panthers in scoring with 18 points. Olivier also had six rebounds, five assists, and three steals. 
 
Fatima Thompson recorded a double-double and ended the game with 16 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. This is Thompson's second double-double in the 2023-24 campaign.
 
Phalan Smith continued to help facilitate the offense. Smith finished this one with 12 points, 13 rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal. 
 
Kasiobi Okenwa led the game with 15 rebounds. Okenwa also had 10 points and one assist. 
 
The team as a whole improved their shooting in this one. The Panthers shot 33 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from behind the arc. Both Thompson and Olivier shot 50 percent individually from behind the arc cashing in on two three pointers each. 
 
Despite their loss, Kristen Donovan was the leading scorer for St. Joseph's-Brooklyn. Donovan ended the night with a double-double consisting of 20 points and 11 rebounds. Destiny Hurt also had a good game for the Bears as she scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds, three assists and four steals. 
 
In the end, the Panthers were able to capitalize and come away with the win in this Skyline Conference matchup. The team picked up their second win, moving their record to 2-6 this season. 
 
The Panthers will play their final game of the year on Friday, December 29 at home against Medger Evers. Tip-off is set for 2pm in the Clark Center Gymnasium.