Michigan
4-4
Maryland Eastern Shore
1-3
Helvey's Big Night Propels Wolverines Past Lady Hawks
12/6/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team defeated the Lady Hawks of Maryland Eastern Shore 77-59 Tuesday night (Dec. 6) at Crisler Arena. A strong first half, in which the Wolverines (4-4) led 23-8 at one point, proved to be enough for Michigan in an otherwise highly contested game. It was U-M's second straight victory of the year, marking the first time since November of 2004 that the Wolverines recorded back-to-back wins.
| | With 30 points Kelly Helvey nearly doubled her previous career scoring high of 16. |
A basket by UMES guard Toni Kennedy at 15:32 in the first half was the Lady Hawks' first field goal of night, bringing Maryland Eastern Shore to within 12 at 16-4. Pushing the ball up the floor, the Wolverines were able to shred the UMES zone defense, as Helvey combined with Cooper and Walker for all of Michigan's 16 points. The early run, which included a pair of Walker layups, got underway with a Helvey spot-up three-pointer from the corner. Another Helvey basket extended the lead to 18-4 with 14:14 left to play in the first half.
Following the Helvey bucket, Kristi Veltkamp connected on a mid-range bucket to cut the Wolverine lead to 18-6 at the 14-minute mark. Veltkamp netted the Lady Hawks' next 10 points, en route to 14 of Maryland Eastern Shore's first 16 points. Her last bucket of the run, with just a shade over 12 minutes remaining in the first half, trimmed the U-M lead to 23-16.
The Lady Hawks continued to peck at the U-M lead, before three straight three-point bombs kept Michigan in the driver's seat at 36-27 with 6:40 before half. Helvey and Cooper combined for the first baskets from downtown, before a Benson triple gave the Wolverines a six-point advantage. Benson connected on two more hoops, ballooning the Maize and Blue advantage to 41-30 with just under five minutes left before halftime.
A three-pointer by Kennedy, her third of the half, ended the first half with Michigan holding a 45-41 lead. The Wolverines had four players hit double figures in the first 20 minutes, with Helvey's 13 points leading the way. Helvey shot 5-of-6 from the field, including a perfect 3-of-3 from long range, to go along with four rebounds. Both Cooper and Walker posted 10 points and four boards, complementing Benson's 10 points and two-steal performance. In all, the Wolverines shot a blistering 7-of-10 from beyond the arc in the first half.
The Wolverines continued to execute in the opening minutes of the second half, scoring a majority of their points from the post. A Helvey turnaround hoop at 17:41 brought the Wolverines' lead to 51-44 before U-M endured a 3:11 scoreless streak. Michigan quickly got things back on track with a three-ball by Benson that kick-started an 11-0 run, capped off by a Walker triple to make the score 62-46 with 9:24 left.
U-M only scored two more field goals the rest of the way and recorded 11 of its final 13 points from the charity stripe.
Michigan will return to the hardwood this Friday (Dec. 9) at Washington. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. PST at Bank of America Arena in Seattle, Wash.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
