RIVIERA MAYA, Mexico - Purdue senior captain Ashley Morrissette produced her first career double-double to lead the Boilermaker women's basketball squad to a 79-54 victory over Northeastern at the 2016 Triple Crown Sports Cancun Challenge, hosted at the Hard Rock Riviera Maya on Friday. Morrissette filled out the stat sheet with 16 points, a career-high 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and a blocked shot as the Boilermakers evened their record at 3-3 and will face No. 11 Stanford tomorrow for the Mayan Division Championship.
The Boilermakers went to work early Friday afternoon, ending the first quarter on a 20-4 run to take a 27-11 lead after 10 minutes. Freshman Dominique Oden sparked the run, scoring 10 of her 12 points in the opening frame, including a pair of 3's, and the Boilermakers turned the Huskies over eight times in the quarter, converting them into 10 points.
Northeastern played even with the Old Gold & Black through the second quarter, leading to a 44-27 halftime score, but the Boilermakers came busting out of the locker rooms in the second half, going on a 9-0 run to extend their advantage to 26, 53-27.
Things turned in the Huskies favor late in the third and early in the fourth as Purdue went cold from the field and committed a few careless turnovers. Northeastern trimmed the lead back to 17 by the end of the third, 61-44, and went on a 9-2 run to start the fourth as they pulled within 12, 65-53, with 4:38 to play. Purdue sophomore Tiara Murphy quickly put the game to rest, draining a pair of 3's in a 12-1 Boilermaker run to extend the lead out over 20 points.
Joining Morrissette and Oden in double-figures were senior Bridget Perry and sophomore Dominique McBryde, finishing with 13 and 14 points, respectively. Perry added three rebounds and two steals, while McBryde had five boards. Junior captain Andreona Keys stuffed the stat sheet with seven points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block, and sophomore Nora Kiesler hit season-high marks of six points and five rebounds in 17 minutes.
Northeastern's Francesca Sally was the only Husky in double-figures, finishing with 10 points and eight rebounds. The Huskies shot just 33.3 percent from the floor (21-63), but cashed in 41.2 percent from behind the arc (7-17).
The Boilermakers and Cardinal meet for the third time in the last four seasons at a holiday tournament, squaring off at the 2013 Hardwood Tournament of Hope in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, and the 2015 Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Florida. Two of the last three meetings against Stanford have gone to overtime, but both have gone against the Boilermakers. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET, and live audio and video will be provided for free via Stretch Internet and YouTube, respectively.