Simaru Fields Scores Season-High 21 Points as ODU Women Rally to Defeat Howard, 63-59
By Harry Minium
NORFOLK, Va. – Simaru Fields came off the bench to score 21 points and the Old Dominion women’s basketball team rallied from a nine-point deficit to claim a 63-59 victory over Howard University on Sunday afternoon at Chartway Arena.
Kelsey Thompson added 16 points and eight rebounds and En’Dya Buford eight points. Riley Stack, the 6-foot-4 transfer from Coastal Carolina, had just five points, but added six rebounds and three blocked shots, and was an intimidating presence in the paint when the Monarchs rallied to take the lead in the third quarter.
The victory was one of the most impressive of the early season for ODU (7-3), which moved to 5-1 at home.
Howard (7-4) entered the game ranked 100th nationally in the NCAA Women’s Basketball NET rankings, higher than all but two Sun Belt teams. The Bison claimed victories over Providence and George Washington earlier this season.
“Tonight’s win was a big one,” said DeLisha Milton-Jones, ODU’s head coach. “They led for a majority of the game and both teams were throwing haymakers. That’s a really good team we played tonight."
ODU trailed most of the first half but took control of the game in the third quarter.
Howard’s Zoe Stewart bounced in a layup from five feet from the basket with 1:27 left in the second quarter to give the Bison a nine-point lead, 37-28, with 1:27 left in the first half.
The Monarchs managed to chop the lead down to three at the half, on a Mariah Clayton layup, two free throws from Thompson and a tip-in off a missed shot by Laila Walker.
Stack started and played just 4:15 in the first half. With ODU trailing by three, she started the second half and immediately made her presence known.
She blocked three shots, had three rebounds an assist and three points over a six-minute stretch in which the Monarchs took the lead for good. What didn’t show up in the stat sheet was her physical presence, which forced the Bison to alter their shots.
ODU went to a man-for-man defense in the second half, and after making 52% of their first-half shots, the Bison made just 31% (nine for 29) in the second half.
“Riley was able to give us some big-time blocks, and it just changed the energy for us in the gym,” Milton-Jones said.
“The beautiful part of her game is that she really makes you think twice when you dribble into the paint and see her. She may not get the block, but she alters shots.”
Fields gave the Monarchs the lead for good, 49-47, with 2:19 left in the third quarter with a three-point shot. She followed with another three-pointer a minute later, and Stack made one of two free throws to build the lead to six, 53-47, at the end of the quarter.
The Monarchs went stone cold in the fourth quarter – two Fields free throws nearly five minutes into the period was ODU’s first points. But Howard fared little better.
Howard trimmed the lead to four, 57-53, on a layup from Zennia Thomas.
But then Buford made a driving layup, and a foul shot, to build the lead back to seven.
Howard then trimmed the lead back to three, 62-59, on a Destiny Bynum-Johnson steal and layup with 32 seconds left.
But Howard could not quite complete the comeback.
Fields then made one of two free throws with 21 seconds left and Howard's Thomas missed a jump shot with 13 seconds left that ended any Bison hopes.
The Monarchs head for a 10-day break between games in which players will take their fall semester exams.
ODU is next home against Troy on Wednesday, Dec. 17 at 11 a.m. in their Sun Belt Conference opener. It’s ODU’s annual Education Day game, with thousands of elementary school children expected to attend.
It will be a busy day for ODU athletics. The football team squares off against South Florida in the StaffDNA Cure Bowl in Orlando, Florida on ESPN.
That evening at 7, the ODU men’s team hosts James Madison in its Sun Belt opener.
Troy will be quite a test for ODU. The Trojans (8-1) won at Missouri of the SEC, 100-82, earlier this season and their only loss was at Kansas State.
Milton-Jones said Sunday’s crowd of 2,074 helped ODU rally and that she hopes a similar crowd is there for Troy.
The included hundreds of local elementary, middle, and high school students who excelled in the classroom were honored by the Stars of Honors program.
“I thought our fans tonight were amazing,” she said. “They definitely made an impact on the game.
“You could feel the energy in the arena tonight.”
Minium is ODU's Senior Executive Writer for Athletics. Contact him at hminium@odu.edu or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
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