CHICAGO - Casey Davis scored a school-record 51 points and became the first player in Roosevelt history to accumulate 2,000 points in a career, and fellow senior Tori Clark registered the team's first-ever triple-double, but the 22nd-ranked Roosevelt women's basketball team still didn't have enough to overcome big offensive bursts by frenetic Olivet Nazarene in a 112-99 loss at the Lillian and Larry Goodman Center on Saturday.
Davis needed just 15 points to become Roosevelt's first 2K scorer and achieved the feat less than eight minutes into the contest for the Lakers (16-7, 7-4 CCAC). She tallied 27 in the first half and 24 in the second, making 21 of her 34 shot attempts and just one three-point bucket, and hit eight of 14 free throws en route to demolishing her previous career high of 33.
"It's hard to put into words how unbelievable Casey's performance was," said Roosevelt head coach Robyn Scherr-Wells. "It's not like she got very many wide open layups. She made shot after shot while taking a lot of contact. To score 51 points in a game is pretty special. And to do it on the night she broke the 2,000 career points mark was pretty cool."
Clark also made program history with her performance, as she notched 10 points and put up career bests with 15 rebounds and 13 assists for the Lakers' first triple-double since the program started four years ago.
"I thought Tori Clark had a very solid game playing heavy minutes at point guard and recording the first triple-double in school history," Scherr-Wells said of the historic stat line from another one of her seniors.
Maria Tamburrino just missed a double-double with 12 points and nine boards.
Miranda Geever scored 27 and Liz Bart added 26 for the Tigers (15-7, 8-2 CCAC), who used their defensive press and quick-shot offense to subdue the hosts.
Roosevelt found itself in a quick hole as Olivet Nazarene scored the game's first 13 points, all in less than two minutes after the opening tip.
The Lakers chipped away, and eventually Roosevelt found itself in a one-possession game after an 8-0 run, highlighted by three straight layups from Davis, made it a 38-35 contest with a little over five minutes left in the first half.
The Green and White had a chance to tie the next time down, but Erin McCaslin's three bounced off, and that set the stage for a three by Holly Carter on the other end to spur a 10-0 Olivet run.
The Tigers took a 16-point lead into the break, and despite Davis' record-setting day and Clark's historic all-around play, the Lakers could get no closer than 12 in the second half as Olivet answered Roosevelt's rally attempts with quick runs of their own.
"Hats off to Olivet," said Scherr-Wells. "They shot phenomenally well. The opening run to start the game was the difference. It puts a lot of pressure on your offense when you spot an opponent 13 points to start the game. I am disappointed that we didn't do a better job defending Liz Bart and Malory Adam [15 points] early in the game.
"I am proud of how hard we played and how many turnovers we forced them into," Scherr-Wells said of the 34 turnovers that Roosevelt caused the Tigers to commit. "We just had a few too many ourselves and we need to shoot the ball better."
Despite the tough loss, the day still proved memorable for the Lakers and caused Scherr-Wells to reminisce about one of her first encounters with Davis and her forecast of the senior guard's greatness.
"I told Casey when she came on her recruiting visit as a senior in high school that she would be the first 2,000-point scorer in Roosevelt history," Scherr-Wells said. "She is a special player and she's had great teammates around her to get her the ball."
Roosevelt takes on Trinity International in Deerfield on Feb. 1.
