Box Score

OREM, Utah – Houston Baptist senior guard Tia Jackson scored a career-high 23 points, dished out seven assists and pulled down six rebounds to lead the seventh-seeded Huskies to a 73-64 upset over second-seeded South Dakota in the quarterfinals of the Great West Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Wednesday afternoon at the UCCU Center.

“I think Coach (Gleason) took the strategy of the last game (against South Dakota last Saturday), since their guards have trouble guarding me and just called 'two low,' which is just letting me go to the hole,” Jackson said. “Once they collapse on me, I look for my teammates and Joselyn (Pugh) and Ernesta (Griciunaite) and the post players knocked down shots. We have to go into the (semifinal) game with the same mindframe – attack, attack, attack.”

Jackson hit 10-of-13 from the field, including a three, and 2-of-3 from the foul line for the Huskies (4-24). Junior guard Megan Green added 13, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, while sophomore forward Destini Texada had 12 points and six rebounds. Sophomore forward Joselyn Pugh had 10 points and senior forward Mele Leasau had nine points as they led the Huskies with seven rebounds apiece. Senior post Ernesta Griciunaite had four rebounds and three blocks, while Brittany Barton added four points.

“We had a great team effort today against South Dakota, to have four players in double digits it's a super, productive game being down one of our starters in Jamie Spriggs,” head coach Mary Gleason said. “Tia Jackson really took the team on her shoulders and played her heart, but every single person contributed to this win.”

Amber Hegge led South Dakota (19-11) with 17 points and 15 rebounds, and Jodie Boss also had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Stacia Robertson came off the bench for 12 points for the Coyotes, while guard Alexis Yackley, who was named to the Great West All-Newcomer Team, was held to three points and Annie Roche had just seven and was held scoreless in the second half.

HBU shot 51.9 percent from the field for the game, including 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from 3-point range, while holding South Dakota to 32.8 percent from the floor and 18.2 percent (4-for-22) from long distance. The Coyotes held advantages at the free throw line, hitting 20-of-27, compared to just 14-of-23 for the Huskies, and also on the boards, 41-37. The difference came in the Huskies' ability to take care of the ball, committing just 11 turnovers, and make big shot after big shot.

“What a great benchmark for our program to get a tournament win, and all we ask is for the kids to play their hardest and try to get better each day,” Gleason said. “By playing well at the end of the season it's all the coaches could hope for, we're really proud of the kids and we're really looking forward to advancing to the next round.”

The Coyotes opened the second half with two quick baskets as part of a 10-3 stretch that cut the Huskies' lead to 40-38 with 16:43 remaining. HBU answered with an 8-0 run on a Texada spinning hook, back-to-back baskets by Leasau and long jumper by Jackson to take a 10-point lead with 12:18 to go. Jackson's 3-point play at the 10:45 mark put the Huskies up by 13, their largest lead of the game, at 53-40. Green nailed a three with just over seven minutes to go to give HBU a 60-48 advantage.

South Dakota got to within seven, 63-56, on a layup by Hegge with four minutes left in the game, and her 3-point play cut the Coyotes' deficit to four with 2:57 remaining. Tempestt Wilson hit a pair of free throws to make the score 63-61, and Yackley hit the first of two free throws to make it a one-point game with 2:07 to go. Texada broke the Huskies' scoring drought by hitting two free throws and Leasau extended the advantage to five, 67-62, with 1:17 remaining. HBU forced a miss on the other end and Jackson went coast-to-coast for the lay in to put the Huskies up by seven. Hegge cut the lead to five with two free throws, but Green made four straight from the line to put the Huskies up by nine and put the game away.

South Dakota scored the first five points of the game, but HBU answered with the next six on a 3-pointer by Green, a putback layup by Pugh and a free throw by Green. The Coyotes hit back-to-back threes, but the Huskies responded with a 9-0 run, capped Jackson's 3-point play and a Texada jumper, to take a 15-11 lead with 11:07 to go in the first half. South Dakota retook the lead on a trey by Roche at the 7:52 mark, but it was short-lived as Griciunaite hit a jumper on the other end. After Hegge hit a pair of free throws to once again give South Dakota a one-point edge, the Huskies scored seven straight after Pugh's 3-pointer from the corner with 6:19 to go. Jackson hit a 3-pointer as HBU extended its lead to 29-22, and another trey by Pugh with 2:22 left gave the Huskies a 34-26 lead. Texada nailed a baseline jumper at the buzzer to give the Huskies a 37-28 lead going into the break.

HBU shot 51.7 percent from the floor in the first half, including 44.4 percent (4-for-9), from behind the arc, while holding South Dakota to only 25.8 percent from the floor and 23.1 percent (3-for-13) from 3-point range. Jackson and Pugh had 10 each for the Huskies at halftime, while Roche led the Coyotes with seven points in the first 20 minutes.