Alcorn State Freeman Plays The Hero In 73-72 Win At Prairie View
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – Senior guard Alexus Freeman tied the game late with a three in the corner and made a free-throw with one second on the clock as the Alcorn State University women's basketball program opened SWAC play with a 73-72 win over Prairie View A&M Monday at the William J. Nicks Building.
The Navasota, Texas native knotted the score at 72-72 with :14 left on the clock, then recorded a steal and was sent to the line. She made 1-of-2 shots and the Lady Braves picked up the victory.
Freeman shot 8-24 on the night, including a 4-10 effort from beyond the arc, and made 3-4 shots at the charity stripe. She netted a team-high 23 points with a pair of rebounds, five assists, and five steals. Junior guard Cloe Lane followed with 18 points and senior forward Miracle Rushing posted an 11-point, 14-rebound double-double.
BOX SCORE
Alcorn shot 28-70 (40.0 percent) from the floor, 7-20 (35.0 percent) from deep, and 10-17 (58.8 percent) at the free-throw line.
Lane opened the scoring with a three-pointer and helped Alcorn take control early as she scored seven. The Lady Braves found success driving to the paint and then pushed their lead to 16-8 on a deep ball by redshirt-sophomore guard Brianna Tolliver with 3:24 to play in the first quarter. The teams traded several baskets before the hosts took advantage of multiple turnovers, scoring 10 straight to take a narrow 22-20 edge heading into the second quarter.
With the tempo slowed down, a Ugochinyere Nwarie layup evened the tally at 24-24 with just under five and a half minutes left before the half. The game continued to go back-and-forth when Prairie View made the most of multiple Alcorn fouls. The Lady Panthers (2-10, 0-1) scored 11 unanswered to pull ahead 39-30 before Lane ended the run with a floater in the lane. The teams went into the locker room with the hosts in control 39-32.
In the third, Freeman helped cut into the PVAM lead with a long ball and a jumper. After the teams traded a pair of 2-for-2 efforts at the line, Freeman drained another three to pull Alcorn to within 47-44. Later, Lane made it a one-point game as she scored an old-fashioned three, but Shala Dobbins answered with a bucket. Alcorn then wrestled back the lead 52-51 as Freeman hit her third three-pointer of the quarter. She added a layup and the Lady Braves led by three entering the final 10 minutes of regulation.
Lane started off the final quarter with a layup and Rushing added a steal and a fast-break score. Sanders followed a pair of Dobbins free-throws with a three ball, but Mariah Campbell sank four freebies and La'Neique Nealey added a layup to make it 61-59 midway through the final quarter. Alcorn took off on a 6-0 run, but PVAM responded with an 8-0 run of its own to knot the game at 67-67 with1:53 remaining. Dobbins gave the Lady Panthers the lead with a layup and a free-throw. Rushing and Dobbins then traded baskets as Alcorn called a timeout trailing 72-69 with :26 left in the game.
Dobbins paced Prairie View in the loss with 23 points. Nealey contributed 15 points with seven boards, and Campbell recorded a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double. The Lady Panthers shot 21-53 (39.6 percent) from the field, 0-4 from long-range, and 30-36 (83.3 percent) at the line.
Alcorn won the battle on the glass 46-33 and scored more second-chance points (18-2). The game featured eight ties and six lead changes.
The Lady Braves continue their road trip Wednesday as they head to Houston for a 5:30 p.m. conference meeting with Texas Southern at the HPE Arena.
Notes
- With her three-pointer in the fourth quarter, Sanders eclipsed 500 career points as a Lady Brave.
- Freeman entered the game with 475 points and needs just two more to reach the 500 career scoring mark.
- Freeman scored 20 or more points for the third time this season. The senior totaled a career-high 25 in Alcorn's home opener against LeMoyne-Owen and posted 24 against Stephen F. Austin.
- Lane reached double figures for the second game in a row after leading Alcorn against Louisiana Tech with 24 points.
- Rushing's double-double is her fifth this season and sixth of her career. Her 14 rebounds tie her season high.
- De'Asia Brown set season highs with nine points, seven rebounds, and 24 minutes played. The junior guard shot 2-8 from the floor and converted 5-8 free-throws.
- Nwarie grabbed a season-high six boards.
- Alcorn opens league play with a win for the first time since 2011-12. That season, the Lady Braves started off 3-0 against conference opponents with wins over Texas Southern, Prairie View, and Jackson State.
- Alcorn and Prairie View will meet again March 1 in Lorman. The Lady Braves will be looking to sweep the Lady Panthers for the first time since 2014-15, when Alcorn swept the regular season but fell to Prairie View 66-59 in the first round of the SWAC Championships. The teams have split the series the past two seasons.
Quoting Head Coach Courtney G. Pruitt
On Freeman's Effort Late
"She's not the SWAC Newcomer of the Year and SWAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year for no reason. She kept her cool and I know there was a lot of trash talking going back and forth between her and Dobbins, which was great. She prevailed and she just wanted it more. That's what we kept telling them the whole time, that we want it more and we'll come out on top and we did."
ALCORN STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS
UAPB Lady Lions open SWAC play with victory over Mississippi Valley on New Year's Day
ITTA BENA, Mississippi – Faith Ohanta came off the bench to score 13 first half points as her Lady Lions snapped an eight-game losing streak with a 64-59 victory over Mississippi Valley State University in its Southwestern Athletic Conference opener at R.W. Harris Complex.
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (3-8, 1-0 SWAC) opened up the game tied at 17 apiece after one quarter of play but distanced itself from Valley (0-13, 0-1 SWAC) with an eight-point cushion at the break. Ohanta finished with the games only double-double, producing 19 points and 10 boards while teammate Malik Muhammad finished with 17 points and five rebounds in the victory. Post player Shawntayla Harris had a solid game down low as she scored six points, eight boards, and four blocks in 25 minutes.
BOX SCORE
Ohanta was on fire all afternoon as she hit 6-of-7 baskets from both the field and the charity stripe while point guard Destiny Brewton chipped in with seven points, four rebounds and four assists for the Lady Lions. UAPB's bench outscored Valley 38-17.
As a team, the Devilettes were held to just eight points in the third quarter but made a huge comeback attempt, scoring 24 points in the final quarter behind LaKendra Bassett's 18 total points, but it wasn't enough as Mississippi Valley dropped its 13th straight game. Basset also finished with four rebounds, four assists and four steals in the loss.
The Lady Lions basketball team will return to action on Saturday, January 6 as it travels to Huntsville, Ala. to face Alabama A&M University in SWAC action. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS AT PINE BLUFF ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATION
Grambling State opens SWAC play with win over AAMU
GRAMBLING, Louisiana --| The Grambling State University women's basketball team had four players reach double figures in scoring as the Lady Tigers rolled past Alabama A&M, 78-49, to open Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) play on Monday afternoon at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.
"They're (Alabama A&M) are a good team, but they are young," Grambling State head coach Freddie Murray said. "We knew their inexperience would kick in. We wanted to get off to a good start in this first game, especially since we play four games in seven days."
Grambling State (4-8 overall, 1-0 SWAC) led 20-16 after one quarter, but used a dominating 22-7 run in the second to take a 42-23 advantage into the break. The Lady Tigers were in cruise control over the final two quarters to snap a five-game losing streak.
BOX SCORE
Shakyla Hill, who was held to just two points last Thursday against Arkansas, nearly finished with a triple-double as she finished with a game-high 14 points, 10 steals and seven assists. She also added five rebounds and one blocked shot.
"She (Shakyla) has to make her mark somewhere and she has been struggling a little bit offensively," Murray said. "She has been able to pick it up on the defensive end and can kind of score off her steals on the offensive end. I am glad to know that she is being more assertive on the defensive end."
Deja McKinney tallied 13 points, two steals, one block and one rebound, while Monisha Neal registered 13 points, nine boards, three assists and two steals. Jazmine Torian came off the bench and recorded 11 points, one rebound and one steal.
Kenisha Tharpe led Alabama A&M (5-7, 0-1) with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Turning Point
After a back-and-forth opening quarter, Grambling State scored the final six points (buckets by Shakyla Hill, Ariel Williamsand Monisha Neal) to take a 20-16 advantage into the second quarter.
The Lady Bulldogs closed the gap to 22-19 after a free throw by Courtney Eggleson with 8:33 left, but that would be as close as Alabama A&M would get. Grambling State closed out the quarter on a 20-4 run to take a 42-23 lead into the half.
The Lady Tigers extended the lead to 56-27 after a free throw by Alexus Williams with 4:57 left in the third and Alabama A&M was able to close the gap to 60-40 early in the fourth quarter, but could not get any closer.
Inside The Numbers
* Grambling State shot 55.3 percent (26-of-47) from the floor and 61.3 percent (19-of-31) from the free-throw line.
* Alabama A&M was 19-of-75 (25.3 percent) from the field and 8-of-13 (61.5 percent) from the charity stripe.
* The Lady Tigers finished with 40 rebounds, including 30 coming off the defensive glass.
* The Lady Bulldogs tallied 48 rebounds, with 29 coming off the offensive glass.
* Grambling State finished with 36 bench points, 30 points in the paint, 17 points off turnovers and 14 fastbreak points.
* Alabama A&M registered 26 points in the paint, 23 bench points, 18 points off turnovers and 18 second-chance points.
* There were five ties and three lead changes.
News and Notes
* The Lady Tigers played at home for the first time since Nov. 30 when Grambling State played host to Southeastern Louisiana.
* Grambling State improved to 3-1 in home games this season.
* Shakyla Hill ranks fourth nationally (first in the SWAC) in steals and is third nationally (first in the SWAC) in steals per game.
Up Next
Grambling State concludes its short two-game homestand as the Lady Tigers play host to Alabama State in a SWAC matchup on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.
GRAMBLING STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS
JSU Lady Tigers Open SWAC Play With 70-61 Win Over Alabama State
JACKSON, Mississippi – Derica Wiggins scored 23 points to go with six rebounds as Jackson State (6-4, 1-0) defeated Alabama State (2-10, 0-1) 70-61 Monday night at Lee E. Williams Athletic Assembly Center during opening night of conference play.
Marneisha Hamer added 12 points for the Lady Tigers, and Christina Ellis posted 10 points, six steals, five rebounds and four assists.
Mya Milner led the Lady Hornets with 15 points, and Tatyana Calhoun had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
BOX SCORE
Jackson State opened the contest with a 10-2 scoring run, eventually leading by as many as 13 before free throws from Milner and Kayla Stephens helped Alabama State close the gap to 24-17 at the end of the first quarter.
The Lady Tigers pressed forward in the next period, as Chelsea Causey capped a 12-4 JSU run with a lay-up to make it 36-21. Down 10 after the break, Alabama State got within two after Pye sank a free throw to cap a stretch where the Lady Hornets outscored Jackson State by eight. Calhoun then gave Alabama State a 55-53 lead with a lay-up early in the fourth. Jackson State then reeled off eight unanswered points, but Stephens converted back-to-back layups to help cut the JSU lead to two (61-59) with 4:15 left.
However, Wiggins was the difference, nailing a trey on the Lady Tigers’ next possession and ultimately scoring six points during a 9-2 JSU run that sealed the contest.
Next Up: JSU returns to action Wednesday, Jan. 3 to face Alabama A&M in SWAC action at the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center on the JSU campus. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
TSU Lady Tigers fall 67-57 to Southern in SWAC opener
HOUSTON – The Lady Tigers of Texas Southern University began the 2018 portion of their season in a less-than-ideal manner as they fell 67-57 to Southern in the Southwestern Athletic Conference opener for both teams Monday.
At TSU's H&PE Arena, the visiting Jaguars seized control of the game with a 22-4 run over an eight-minute span during the third and fourth quarters that gave Southern a 61-48 lead with 5:30 left to play in the game.
Joyce Kennerson scored a game-high 21 points for the Lady Tigers (5-7, 0-1 SWAC), but was held to 6-of-19 shooting as Southern erased a 35-29 halftime lead to claim the victory. Briana Green led the Jaguars (2-8, 1-0 SWAC) with 20 points.
BOX SCORE
Southern's defense limited the SWAC's best-shooting team to 26 percent shooting (8 of 31) during the second half. The Lady Tigers ended up shooting 34 percent (19 of 56) for the game.
TSU also entered Monday's contest as the best 3-point shooting team in the SWAC, but was held to 20 percent shooting (3 of 15) from behind the arc against the Jaguars.
Isis Lane scored 10 points off the TSU bench. Samantha Duncan scored 17 points for Southern.
Kennerson, the second-leading scorer in the NCAA with 25.9 points per game entering the contest, was held under her scoring average for the third consecutive game. She had been averaging 31.7 points per game at home this season.
TSU's Camille Mills pulled in eight rebounds in addition to scoring four points. Mills is TSU's leading rebounder, and the fourth-leading rebounder in the SWAC among guards.
The Lady Tigers return to action Wednesday when they host Alcorn State at 5:30 p.m.
TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS
SWAC MEN
Alabama A&M 71, Grambling State 64
Arkansas at Pine Bluff 80, Mississippi Valley State 71
Prairie View A&M 76, Alcorn State 64
Texas Southern 78, Southern 66
Jackson State 70, Alabama State 61
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