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CHARLOTTE, North Carolina – The Lincoln University advanced to its first CIAA Women's Championship Game because the Lady Lions never buckled in the semifinals.
Guard Amani Clark scored a layup and made a key steal in the final 24 seconds to lift the Lady Lions over Livingstone College in a thrilling 57-55 semifinal basketball victory in the CIAA Tournament on Friday, February 27, 2015. The Lady Lions can win their first CIAA title on Saturday against Virginia State University at 4 p.m. The contest will be televised live on the ASPiRE Network.
"It means the world to us right now," Lady Lions center Mieana Gaines said. "Three or four years ago nobody believed in Lincoln. I am just living in the moment."
The Lady Lions, the Northern Division co-champions, defeated a team many thought would be in the finals. Even though the Lady Blue Bears were stripped of 20 wins because of an ineligible player, they were still a formidable unit. At one time, the Lady Blue Bears were ranked as high as fifth nationally in Division II.
But the Lady Lions, the top Northern Division seed, got key contributions from several players to gain the victory. Clark finished with 11 points while guard Courtney Smith and swing player Teira Pendleton each added nine points. All-CIAA center Zephrah Pam had seven points and 10 rebounds before fouling out, and forward De'jah Taylor contributed six points and six rebounds off the bench.
The Lady Lions frontline including Pam, Taylor and Gaines (four rebounds) battled the Lady Blue Bears even on the boards as both teams recorded 51 rebounds. The Lady Lions' guards including Clark, Smith and Alaysia Washington nailed key shots and came up two steals apiece.
Because of their team effort, the Lady Lions never bent when the Lady Blue Bears, the No. 3 Southern Division seed, climbed back in the game from a 10-point halftime deficit.
"It was a dogfight from start to finish," Lady Lions' Head Coach Jessica Kern said. "Coach [Anita] Howard and her team did a phenomenal job. Our young ladies have been playing with a purpose. We never say die. Our [inside] players made several key shots and key stops."
Down 53-48 with 3:38 remaining, the Lady Blue Bears made one final push. Precious Roberts scored four points during a 7-2 run including a midcourt steal and layup to tie the game at 55-55 with 1:09 remaining.
The Lady Blue Bears had a chance to take the lead but missed two free throws with 33 seconds remaining. That set the stage for Clark, who drove to the basket for a layup after catching the inbounds pass at midcourt. Her basket put the Lady Lions back ahead 57-55 with 24 seconds left.
"We wanted to take the bigs away from the basket," Kern said. "Amani made a great read."
Clark clinched the victory when she stripped Amber Curtis as Curtis attempted a three-pointer with three seconds left.
"She came up with a really big stop," Kern said. "That is a momentum builder for her going into the [championship] game."
Livingstone Head Coach Anita Howard never panicked when her team trailed 32-22 at halftime. But the Lady Blue Bears, who shot 30.8 percent from the floor, could never snatch momentum away from the Lady Lions. The 55 points were the third-fewest scored by the Lady Blue Bears this season.
"Lincoln got the best of us," Howard said. "We just missed out on some opportunities at the end of the game and fell short. I thought we would be able to pull out the game. Lincoln was playing pretty consistent."
Curtis scored 15 points for the Lady Blue Bears (8-20 overall). Roberts scored 10 points off the bench and Wende Foster had 10 rebounds and four blocks.
The Lady Lions (22-7 overall) were tenacious in building their first-half lead. The contest was even in the early going but the Lady Lions took charge behind back-to-back three-pointers by Washington. She banked in a three and drained a trey from the corner for a 21-14 Lady Falcons lead. The lead stretched to nine points on a fadeaway jumper by Courtney Lucas.
The Lady Lions had chances to extend the lead, but made only 8 of 17 free throw attempts in the first half. The missed free throws allowed the Lady Blue Bears to trim the deficit. Sophie Lepzem scored two layups and Labrea Walker scored a layup off a steal as the Lady Blue Bears got within 24-20.
It appeared the Lady Blue Bears would gain control, but the Lady Lions finished the first half in a flurry. They went on an 8-2 run to lead 32-22 at halftime.
Pendleton led the Lady Lions with seven points while Clark and Washington each added six points in the first half. Walker scored five points for the Lady Lions, who shot 27 percent.
Kern sensed the Lady Lions would have an exceptional season. Her intuition was correct.
"This is the first offseason that every kid did their individual work," Kern said. "When the girls showed up in the summer, I knew something special was going to happen, I just didn't know what it [was going to be]."
Now she knows.
QUOTES
The Lincoln Head Coach Jessica Kern
"It was a dogfight from start to finish. Coach Howard and her team did a phenomenal job. Our young ladies have been playing with a purpose. We have to do everything that nobody else does."
"Every time you think you are down and can look up, you have a long ways to go. We never say die. If you have the ability to do that on both ends of the floor (she didn't finish sentence). Some really big players came up with big shots and big stops. They do the dirty stuff that nobody puts out on a stat line."
Mieana Gaines (On reaching the finals):
"It means the world to us right now. Three or four years ago nobody believed in Lincoln. I am just living in the moment.
Kern (On Facing Shaw):
"It will be about living in that moment and going into the next. We are going to give our all. They got to make the bunnies under the basket and make free throws."
Kern (On the game-winning layup):
"We wanted to take the bigs away from the basket. Amani made a great read."
Kern (On Clark's game-clinching steal):
She came up with a really big stop. That is a momentum builder for her going into the [championship] game."
Kern (On Lincoln's potential heading into the season):
"This is the first offseason that every kid did their individual work. When the girls showed up in the summer, I knew something special was going to happen, I just didn't know what it [was going to be]."
De'jah Taylor (On Lincoln's potential heading into the season): "We already had in our mind that we were going to the championship in the preseason."
Livingstone Head Coach Anita Howard: (On the loss)
"It is tournament time. Lincoln got the best of us. We just missed out on some opportunities at the end of the game and fell short."
"We got off to a late start on the floor and didn't get into our usual routine. We were also missing two key players and another player was injured. We didn't get a chance to really get a good practice. We figured it out in second half."
I thought we would be able to pull out the game. Lincoln was playing pretty consistent."
"This team has been through many adversities and they stuck it though. I am indebted to them for what they did for me at Livingstone [this season]."
(About Losing Cosby due to ineligibility):
You can't complete a puzzle without all the pieces. We had an unfinished puzzle but we figured it out and moved on. We've been plagued with adversity, but adversity builds character. We bonded throughout adversity.
(On the game-winning layup by Clark of Lincoln):
"We were trying to get a five second call on the inbounds play. We missed an assignment on the outside."
(About first half when Livingstone fell behind by 10):
"It was effort. Lincoln showed that they wanted it more. In the first half, Lincoln got its hands on all the loose balls, and they were taking the ball out of our hands. I told them if you don't want to be in the locker room crying after the game, then show why we are where we are today."
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