Richmond lights up UMass - again

Richmond 89, Richmond 63
Good thing this one was on national TV (CBS College Sports), as Michael Shafer ought to be able to get plenty of recruiting mileage out of the show these Spiders put on. Then again, we probably should have seen something like this coming. A year ago in Amherst, Mass., the Spiders jumped on UMass with some ridiculous first-half shooting - 69 percent from the field, 70 percent from the 3-point range and 100 percent from the line (1-of-1) - en route to a 19-point halftime lead. Can't top that, right? Well, Wednesday night at the Robins Center, the Spiders blitzed the Minutewomen in the first half again, this time shooting 53.6 percent from the field, 63.6 percent from 3 and 100 percent from the line (4-of-4) on their way to a 26-point lead at intermission. The Spiders went on to expand their advantage to 47 before cruising home for their seventh victory in eight games. The key to Richmond's success against this team? UMass is turnover-prone, and Richmond specializes in turning defense into offense. On Wednesday, they scored nearly half their points (43) off Minutewomen turnovers. Abby Oliver led the way with 20 points, Brittani Shells had 13, Samantha Bilney chipped in 12 and freshman Becca Wann knocked down a career-high 11 for the Spiders, who posted their highest point total since putting up101 on Howard on Dec. 15, 2004.