Samuels tops 1,000 career points, leads SMU to win

[PonyPride]

Senior guard Jillian Samuels tied her career high with 20 points, and sophomore post Christine Elliott came within one rebound of a double-double as the SMU women's basketball team rallied past Tulane, 70-59, Sunday afternoon at Moody Coliseum.

Samuels hit 6-of-9 shots from the floor, including 2-of-3 three-pointers, and hit 6-of-7 free throws en route to becoming the 17th player in SMU history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark (she has 1,005).

Elliott added 12 points and nine rebounds as SMU improved to 13-4 overall and 3-1 in Conference USA games. The Green Wave also is 13-4, and 2-2 in C-USA games.

Samuels said after the game that she wasn't aware of exactly how close she was to joining the 1,000-point club, until she got a reminder.

"My dad sent me a text message about it," Samuels said. "I knew it was coming up sometime, but didn't know how close I was."

Samuels said she was happy to reach the plateau, calling it "one of my goals," but insisted that her individual accomplishments weren't her primary focus.

"I don't care about that stuff," she said. "I mean, I do — it's nice to have your name up there — but I wanted to focus on winning this game and playing hard. We didn't play that well in the first half, but we kept playing hard, and came out with the win."

The Mustangs trailed by three, 33-30, after a first half that was not as close as the score at the intermission indicated, primarily because of Tulane's relentless defensive pressure.

"We didn't follow through on the game plan," Samuels said. "Our press break wasn't working — we acted surprised that they were trapping us after every basket. It's not like (associate head coach) Lisa (Dark) didn't tell us they would do that. They press and trap all the time, and the coaches had us ready for it, but in the first half, we acted like we didn't know what to do."

"Overall, we need to be a better ball-handling team," head coach Rhonda Rompola said. "That's something we've struggled with, and today we saw the team with the best press in the conference. The only team I can compare them with is Texas A&M — they just press, non-stop."

Rompola prefers team success over individual accomplishments as much as any coach, but she said Samuels' accomplishment Sunday deserves serious recognition.

"Every kid wants to put her name in the record books, but what it means is she has put the ball in the hole for us — a lot," Rompola said. "Hopefully, this will continue to increase her confidence, and help her keep shooting well. Ever since she fouled out of the UAB game, she has played really well for us."

Rompola said that Samuels' biggest impact came at the end of each half. While the Ponies struggled before the intermission, Samuels hit a three-pointer that helped close the gap and make the halftime deficit manageable. Then, she hit crucial free throws in the waning seconds of the second half to ice the win for SMU.

"We want to get the ball in her hands late in games, and get her to the line, because she's money at the line," Rompola said. "Hitting shots like she did today is what a senior — a leader — does."

The Mustangs return to the court Saturday, Jan. 23, in the second half of an SMU basketball doubleheader. The men's team hosts Houston Baptist at 2 p.m., followed at 5 p.m. by the women's team against East Carolina.

[Hey June]

1,000 points is a hell of an accomplishment.
I'm going to have to check out a women's games — sounds like they're for real.

[Bigtime41]

Great job JB! You should feel proud of the legacy you are leaving behind and standard you are setting for future PG's coming to SMU! Thanks for the memories.