New York, New York - The BMCC women's basketball team dropped their final home contest of the season 71-54 to Dutchess Community College on Thursday night at BMCC Gymnasium. The Panthers fall to 6-12 on the season.
 
Prior to the opening tipoff, the BMCC women's basketball program paid tribute to its two graduating sophomores - Emily Kennedy (Brooklyn, New York) and Yisneily Morales (Bronx, New York).
 
The Panthers had two players score in double figures on the night as Kennedy posted her team-leading 10th double-double of the season and ninth 20-point scoring performance with a game-high 21 points, 15 points coming in the second half, and 16 rebounds, which was also a career-high. Kennedy has 15 20-point games for her career and also handed out a team-high two assists.

Kennedy also hit the 600-point plateau with 614 career points, moving into third all-time in program history, surpassing Nikola Zilakova's 600 career points from 2016 to 2018. Her season-best and team-high 341 points are also the ninth-highest in a single season, passing Fanta Sissoko's total of 330 career points from 2001-2002.
 
Freshman Kamella Ross (Bronx, New York) posted her fourth double-figure game and her second in the last three games with 15 points, 11 points coming in the second half while missing consecutive double-doubles by two rebounds with two on the night. Classmate Mariah Wigfall (New York, New York) gobbled up a team-best five steals, and Sheliyah Jackson (Bronx, New York) blasted away a career-best tied three shots in the contest. Jackson leads the Panthers with 21 blocks on the year, which is good for seventh all-time in school history and eighth most in a single season.
 
Dutchess Community College jumped out to a quick start, registering nine of the first 11 points of the contest to build a 9-2 lead in the first quarter on a Frach Guzman jumper at 4:40. BMCC would get the deficit down to five the following possession as a Kennedy jumper at 4:10 made it 9-4 then after a Falcon jump shot from Shalanda Lefevre at 3:14 got the lead up to seven, 11-4 before Kennedy knocked down two free throws at 2:24 to get the lead down to five, 11-6. The Falcons finished the period on a 7-2 run to lead 14-8 after one.
 
Dutchess took control the rest of the way, building their lead in the second quarter, the largest of the first half, 16 twice, on a pair of Guzman layups at 2:21 to make it 34-18 and a 36-20 lead with seven seconds left, which the Falcons took into the halftime break.
 
Falcons got the lead to 20 at 1:20 of the third quarter, 55-33 on a Gonzalez layup, and led 54-35 after three. After Dutchess built their lead to 21, 56-35 at 9:47 of the fourth quarter on a Shalanda Lefevre layup, BMCC battled hard to the end, outscoring the Falcons 17-5 over the next 5:56 to get the deficit down to single digits for the first time since midway through the first quarter on a Kennedy three-pointer at 3:53 cutting the deficit to nine, 61-52. 
 
Dutchess wouldn't let the Panthers any closer controlling the narrative the rest of the way en route to a 71-54 victory.
 
Four of the five Dutchess starters scored in double figures, with Tiffany Gonzalez leading the charge with a team-best 16 points, while Joey Roach had 15 points, and Franchelis Guzman and Alexis Ochoa-Pena both chipped in with 13 points apiece. Shalanda Lefevre had a team-best 12 rebounds, and Roach completed her double-double on the night with 10 rebounds while turning away two shots, which was also a team-best. Ochoa-Pena ate up a game-high six steals, and Gonzalez handed out three helpers, also a game-best.
 
The Panthers will look for the season sweep of Region 15 opponent Suffolk Community College on the road Saturday, February 3, in Selden, New York. For more information, visit the BMCC Women's Basketball Schedule Page.


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