Victoria Sutton scored the first basket for the Golden Bears in the third and fourth quarters, which is not surprising for the Miles women's basketball team's leading scorer. 

The issue, though, came from what happened in between those two baskets. The Lady Bears made just one other basket during that span - which lasted almost 17 minutes - as what was an eight-point advantage dissolved into a 53-49 loss to Clark Atlanta Saturday afternoon at Knox-Windham Gymnasium. Jasmine Hollis had 15 points, 12 rebounds and two blocked shots but it was not enough to help Miles (1-3, 0-1 SIAC) stop a three-game skid in its conference opener.

Miles never trailed in the first half. Going early and often to Hollis, the Lady Bears opened an 18-10 lead with less than two minutes remaining in the first quarter. But, in what became a recurring theme in the first half, turnovers helped the Lady Panthers (3-2, 1-0) stay close. CAU trailed just 18-16 at the end of the first quarter and after Miles pushed the lead back to eight points, the Lady Panthers were within 28-27 with 1:37 left in the half on a steal and layup by Naomi Holloway (game-high 17 points). But Darika Chelsey (five points) knocked down a 3-pointer that helped the Lady Bears go to the break with a 33-27 advantage.

Sutton opened the third quarter with two free throws, then scored a bucket at the 8:26 mark to give Miles a 37-29 lead. But from there, a lid was placed on the basket for the Golden Bears. Miles missed 9-of-10 shots (the only make a layup by Hollis with 2:12 left in the third) and turned the ball over seven times as CAU took a 41-39 lead into the fourth quarter. The Lady Bears would miss their first 12 shots of the fourth quarter - a streak ended by a Sutton basket with 1:50 left in the game - as they made only four field goals and shot 15 percent in the second half.

Still, Miles tied the game at 47 when Najla Shamsid-Deen (six points) scored with 90 seconds remaining. But Holloway scored on CAU's next possession and hit all four of its free throws down the stretch to steal a victory.

The Lady Bears are back in action on Monday when they host Delta State. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.