Late collapse dooms Miles
Box Score
After leading for all but 3:27 in regulation, it would be hard to fathom that Miles would not defeat Delta State for the first time in eight tries Saturday afternoon.
But after Alondrea Rush drained a 3-pointer with eight seconds left to force overtime, the Lady Statesmen started the extra period on an 8-1 run and held the Lady Bears without a field goal for the first four minutes of overtime to steal a 59-54 win at Knox-Windham Gymnasium. Despite forcing 31 turnovers and shooting 40 free throws, Miles (4-4) could not close the deal.
Victoria Sutton scored 13 points and
Javonne Brown added 11 points for Miles, who led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter. Three players scored in double figures for Delta State, led by Anissa Jackson's 14 points.
A layup by
Taylor Terry with just more than seven minutes left in the fourth quarter gave Miles a 36-27 lead. But it would be the last basket Miles would score until there was 58 seconds left in overtime. Still, the Golden Bears led 43-38 with 1:13 left in regulation before what looked like a sure win started to slip away. Jackson knocked down a jumper with 23 seconds left to cut the DSU deficit to three points.
Miles advanced the ball into the frontcourt but a costly turnover gave the ball back to the Lady Statesmen with 13 seconds remaining. Rush then got the ball on the inbound pass, drove into the frontcourt, and with the help of a screen, drained a 3-ball to tie the game at 43 and ultimately send it to overtime.
From there, Delta State took control by getting shots in the paint with relative ease. When the Lady Statesmen went connecting on shots from the field (they made all four of their attempts), they were draining shots from the charity stripe, going 8-of-8 on free throws in the extra period. Miles may have won in regulation but missed 11 free throws (nine in the second half) and was just 26-of-40 overall.
Morgan Hardy had seven points, seven rebounds and four steals and
Alexis Jones was a perfect 6-of-6 on free throws and scored eight points for Miles, which plays at Lynn on Dec. 18. Tip-off is at 1 p.m.Â
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