HOUSTON – After McNeese broke the only tie of the second half on a 3-pointer with 3:49 left, HBU clamped down and shut out the Cowgirls the rest of the way, scoring the last seven points for a 72-68 victory in Southland Conference women's basketball Wednesday night in Sharp Gym.
Sophomore guard
Amanda Johnson led five Huskies (6-19, 4-11 SLC) in double figures with 16 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:18 left. Freshman forward
Lauren Calver added a career-high 14 points, while sophomore guard
Lisa Zderadicka scored 13 points, dished out a career-high tying eight assists and grabbed five rebounds. Freshman forward
Taylor Kollmorgen posted her fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 13 boards. Senior guard
Heidi Byrd chipped in with 11 points.
Amber Donnes led the Cowgirls (12-14, 7-8) with 17 points, hitting 5-of-10 from beyond the arc, while Dede Sheppard scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Mercedes Rogers scored 10 points, while Frederica Haywood led McNeese with 10 rebounds.
HBU shot 47.5 percent from the field, 4-for-17 from long distance, and 10-of-15 from the line, while McNeese shot 41.5 percent, 7-for-20 from deep, and 7-for-12 from the stripe. The Cowgirls outrebounded the Huskies, 42-33, but turned the ball over 18 times to HBU's 12. There were seven ties in the first half, but only the one in the second.
HBU trailed 12-11 early, but a layup by Zderadicka and a pair of free throws by Johnson gave the Huskies a three-point lead. Rogers drew the Cowgirls back within one, but Johnson knocked down a baseline jumper, then found Calver for a layup to put HBU up by five with 48 seconds remaining. Victoria Rachal hit a short jumper with 22 seconds left as HBU led 19-16 at the end of one.
McNeese scored the first five points of the second, but layup by Jones tied the game, 21-21. A three-point play by Davis and a 3-pointer by Mady Brasseaux put the Cowgirls ahead by six, but Byrd and Johnson answered with back-to-back triples to make the score, 29-29, with 4:22 remaining in the half. Sheppard's three-point play with just under two minutes on the clock broke a tie, but Kollmorgen had her own "and-one" to knot the score again. Hannah Cupit made a layup, then freshman guard
Britta Daub made one-of-two free throws for HBU. Davis also hit one-of-two from the line with one second left to give the Cowgirls a 39-37 at the break.
Donnes opened the second half with a three for McNeese, but Zderadicka had a nifty scoop for a layup. After Rachal hit a long jumper, the Huskies went on an 8-0 run to take a 47-44 lead. Rachal ended the drought with a jumper, then Donnes nailed a three and Sheppard drove in for a layup to put the Cowgirls back up by four. A free throw and a layup by Kollmorgen drew HBU within one at 55-54 heading into the final frame.
Daub found Calver wide open underneath the basket on the Huskies' first possession in the fourth, then Calver's sweeping lefty hook put them up by three. After Sheppard made a jumper, Calver drove in for a layup, then Zderadicka made a three-point play after she was fouled on a jump shot to give the Huskies their largest lead at 63-57. Donnes hit a three, then two free throws by Rogers cut HBU's lead to one. Daub weaved her way inside for a layup, but Donnes came back with another three to tie the game, 65-65, with 4:49 to go.
Cupit broke the tie with a trey with 3:49 remaining, but the basket would be McNeese's final points of the game. Byrd slipped in for a reverse layup with two minutes on the clock, then Zderadicka found Johnson open in the corner, and she buried the three to put HBU ahead, 70-68, with 1:18 to go. Daub blocked a shot by Rachal with 35 seconds left, Zderadicka grabbed the rebound and was fouled. Byrd was fouled with 30 seconds remaining to put the Huskies in the bonus, but missed both free throws. Sheppard missed two shots at the basket in the final 14 seconds, the second resulting in a jump ball that went to HBU with eight seconds left. Zderadicka then sank two free throws to ice it for the Huskies.
The Huskies will travel to Lamar for a 2 p.m. tip Saturday at the Montagne Center in Beaumont, Texas.
