SAINT LEO, Fla. – Barry is finding its mojo.
The Buccaneers won their second straight game, beating host Saint Leo, 66-58, Saturday at the Bowman Center.
The Bucs improved to 12-8 overall, 4-7 in the Sunshine State Conference.
Barry junior guard Colette Eule had 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and sophomore guard Jackie Perez finished with 17 points, hitting 5 of 6 three-pointers. It was Eule’s second double-double of the season.
“I think all of our guards go into every game just trying to contribute,” Eule said.
Barry shot 20 of 55 from the field for 36.4 percent. Saint Leo (10-11, 5-6 SSC) was 19 of 54 for 35.2 percent.
Perez canned a three from the corner to give Barry a 43-37 lead with 12:42 remaining. Saint Leo responded to take a 46-45 lead, but Perez hit another three from the opposite corner, using a screen from Amanda Frontino, to push Barry back in front, 48-46.
Perez, who pointed to Dominique Dixon at the top of the key to swing the ball to Eule on the wing, ran the offense from her catch-and-shoot spot. Dixon fed Eule, who swung it to the corner to Perez, who casually then knocked down the three to put Barry ahead 52-46 with just over six minutes remaining.
Eule’s putback with 1:43 left gave Barry a seven-point lead. Following a stout defensive stand at the other end, Perez sank two free throws to make it 58-49. Dixon sank two free throws with a little over a minute left. Eule hit two free throws, and Tyler Hardy sank another to help salt the game away from the line.
“We go into every game saying, ‘Basketball is a game of runs,’” Eule said. “That was what I was really happy with – the way we played when it was close. We finished well, finished our free throws, and did it when it mattered.”
Hardy had seven points and seven rebounds. Dixon had six points and six boards. Danika Pisconeri finished with five points.
Saint Leo’s Kinnara Lewis had 15 points, and Keishara Green had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Teresa Manigrasso had 10 points and five assists.
The Buccaneers hit 11 of 31 field goals in the first half. Saint Leo was 11 of 26. The Lions outscored the Bucs, 22-14, in the paint. The Lions outscored Barry, 21-14, in bench points.
“I think everybody has in their minds that we want to keep stringing wins together,” Eule said. “Everybody stepped up. It feels great. Having a long bus ride, it feels good to go back with a win.”
BARRY 66, SAINT LEO 58
BARRY (12-8, 4-7 SSC)
EULE, Colette 5-13 6-7 17; PEREZ, Jackie 5-7 2-2 17; HOWARD, Kaley 3-10 2-2
8; HARDY, Tyler 1-7 5-6 7; FRONTINO, Amanda 2-5 0-0 6; DIXON, Dominique 2-6
2-2 6; PISCONERI, Danika 2-6 1-2 5; JENKINS, Alesha 0-1 0-0 0; BALL,
Stephanie 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-55 18-21 66.
SAINT LEO (10-11, 5-6 SSC)
LEWIS, Kinnara 5-13 0-0 15; GREEN, Keishara 7-13 0-2 14; MANIGRASSO, Teresa
2-9 6-6 10; CONNELLY, Chelsea 1-7 5-5 7; WILLIAMS, Chelsea 2-2 2-4 6;
CLYBURN, Elise 1-5 1-2 3; WINANS, Sarah 1-4 0-0 3; GRANVILLE, Christina 0-1
0-0 0. Totals 19-54 14-19 58.
Barry......................... 28 38 - 66
Saint Leo..................... 32 26 - 58
3-point goals--Barry 8-19 (PEREZ, Jackie 5-6; FRONTINO, Amanda 2-5; EULE,
Colette 1-3; DIXON, Dominique 0-3; HARDY, Tyler 0-2), Saint Leo 6-21 (LEWIS,
Kinnara 5-9; WINANS, Sarah 1-4; MANIGRASSO, Teresa 0-2; CONNELLY, Chelsea
0-3; CLYBURN, Elise 0-3). Fouled out--Barry-None, Saint Leo-None.
Rebounds--Barry 36 (EULE, Colette 10), Saint Leo 37 (GREEN, Keishara 11).
Assists--Barry 10 (EULE, Colette 6), Saint Leo 12 (MANIGRASSO, Teresa 5).
Total fouls--Barry 12, Saint Leo 16. Technical fouls--Barry-None, Saint
Leo-None. A-355