DeChent Drops 29, 'Cats Cruise Past NJIT

Saturday, January 18

Durham, N.H.

6 PM

University of New Hampshire

8-11,2-4America East

NJIT

6-12,3-2America East

NJIT

New Hampshire

Eva DeChent scored a game-high 29 points to lead the Wildcats.

1/18/2025 8:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

DURHAM, N.H. – The University of New Hampshire women's basketball team earned a dominant 70-48 victory over NJIT on Saturday evening at Lundholm Gym, with four Wildcats scoring in double figures.

Sophomore guard Eva DeChent (Westchester, N.Y.) led the way with 29 points and seven rebounds on 10-for-18 shooting, including 4-for-7 from 3-point range.

Junior guard Diana Eliasson (Stockholm, Sweden) tied her career high with 13 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field, to go along with two rebounds, two steals, and a block.

Senior forward Belen Morales Lopez (Alicante, Spain) and sophomore guard Maggie Cavanaugh (Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.) added 11 points each.

The Wildcats improve to 8-11 overall (2-4 America East), while the Highlanders fall to 6-12 (3-2).

Up Next

UNH travels to Bryant on Thursday, Jan. 23, for a rematch against the Bulldogs. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Chace Athletic Center.

first quarter

The Wildcats jumped out to an early 13-6 lead at the media timeout with 4:37 to go in the first frame.
DeChent came out red hot for UNH, going 3-for-3 from 3-point range in the opening minutes.
UNH went on a 10-0 run out of the timeout capped by an and-1 from Eliasson, extending the lead to 23-6 and forcing an NJIT timeout at the 1:29 mark.
The Wildcats ended the quarter on a high note, with DeChent adding her fourth 3-pointer and Eliasson finishing a driving layup to give UNH a commanding 25-6 lead after one.

second quarter

The Highlanders scored the first 14 points of the second quarter, cutting the Wildcats' lead to 25-20.
Eliasson ended UNH's scoring drought with a bucket at the 1:58 mark, and junior forward Lucia Melero Sabat (Barcelona, Spain) added a basket to push the lead to 29-20 at halftime.

third quarter

DeChent continued her strong performance, scoring 11 of UNH's first 13 points of the quarter.
Cavanaugh knocked down her first 3-pointer of the game to put the 'Cats up 15 (49-34) with 2:12 to play in the third.
UNH maintained control and led 55-38 heading into the final quarter.

fourth quarter

Morales Lopez extended the Wildcats' lead to 20 (59-39) with 8:25 remaining.
Eliasson scored six consecutive points to cap off an 11-2 run, giving UNH its largest lead of the game at 70-41 with 2:14 to go.
The Highlanders scored the final seven points, but the 'Cats cruised to the 70-48 win.

inside the numbers

UNH shot an efficient .456 (26-for-57) from the field and .417 (5-for-12) from three, while holding NJIT to .388 (19-for-49) shooting overall and .176 (3-for-17) from downtown.
The Wildcats outrebounded the Highlanders 41-24.

UNH notebook

DeChent recorded her sixth 20+ point game of the season and her fourth with 25+.
Eliasson's 13 points tied her career high and she was a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.
Cavanaugh tallied her third consecutive game scoring in double figures.
Morales Lopez has scored in double digits in back-to-back games and has recorded one block in three straight contests.
Senior forward Clara Gomez (Barcelona, Spain) grabbed 10 rebounds, marking her sixth game with double-digit rebounds.