WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Feb. 18, 2017) - No. 16 Central Missouri Jennies Basketball overcame a 17-point deficit to take a one-point lead with nine seconds to play, but a three-point play from Lindenwood gave the Lions a 69-67 win Saturday afternoon in Warrensburg. The loss drops the Jennies to 20-5 on the season and 13-4 in the MIAA.
It looked as if the Jennies were on the verge of their sixth fourth-quarter comeback of the season. UCM cut the lead from 12 points to three in a three minute span during the final frame, getting a three from
Sydney Crockett and layups from
Paige Redmond,
Kelsey Williams and
Megan Skaggs.
After making it a one-possession game, the Jens went 0-7 over the next three minutes. Their defense kept them in the game late though, forcing 13 second half turnovers, six in the fourth quarter.
The Lions built their lead back up to five, 64-59 with two and a half minutes left to play. With 30 seconds remaining, Redmond banked in a layup and completed the three-point play with her fifth free throw of the game.
Ashley Duffy got the Jennies the ball back, fighting on the ground for a lose ball, and Redmond gave UCM their first lead since the first half, going 1-2 at the free throw line with nine seconds to play.
On the Lions' ensuing possession, Jerricah Butler drove hard towards the basket, knocking in a layup and drew a foul. Her free throw put Lindenwood back up two with 2.3 seconds left in the game.
On their final possession, Crockett hit Duffy at half court, but her "Hail Mary" three-point attempt sailed right of the basket.
Redmond led all scorers with 19 points. Skaggs added 18 and was 3-8 beyond the arc.
Kayonna Lee came down with a game-high 12 rebounds and
Kelsey Williams dished out a career-high eight assists.
Lindenwood put the Jennies in a hole early, seemingly unable to miss from the field. In the first 20 minutes, the Lions went 15-26 from the floor, 57.6%. They used a 17-2 run in the middle of the second quarter to build their lead to double-digits. They then went on another 7-0 run at the end of the first half and start of the second, to take their first 17-point lead, 45-28.
The Lions had three scorers in double-figures. Butler finished with a team-high 17 and Kallie Bildner and Sara Ross each scored 14. Bildner finished with a double-double coming down with 11 rebounds.
The Lions held a big advantage on the glass, outrebounding UCM 42-31. Despite only going 10-for-27 in the second half, Lindenwood finished the game shooting 47.2% from the floor, compared to just 34.3% from the Jens. They also hit 16-of-19 at the free throw line, 84.2%, while UCM was 12-for-17 for 70.6%.
Even though the Jens lost, Central Missouri clinched an opening round bye into Kansas City in the MIAA Tournament as one of the top-four teams in the MIAA regular season standings. There are still two games left to play to determine seeding.
The Jennies wrap up the regular season next week on the road at Missouri Southern Thursday, Feb. 23, then play their regular season finale, and senior night, Saturday, Feb. 25 in Warrensburg.
