Box Score (html)
WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Shalie McAlister scored a basket off an inbounds play with 19 seconds to play, capping a 10-3 run by SWOSU that spanned the final 2:15 as the Lady Bulldogs handed No. 21-ranked Harding their first conference defeat of the season by a score of 80-79 on Thursday evening at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center.
SWOSU trailed in the early going before going on an 8-2 run to end the first quarter and take a 17-11 lead into the second quarter. The Lady Bulldogs remained in control in the second quarter, building a lead as high as 16 at 35-19 with 3:10 to play before the break. Foul trouble hampered SWOSU, though, as
Hailey Tucker and
Whitney Dunn sat with two fouls and Harding closed the half on a 12-4 run to cut the Lady Bulldogs lead to 39-31 at the break.
The Lady Bulldogs quickly pushed the lead back to 13, 46-13, early in the third quarter, but Harding heated up and took the lead with 2:37 to play in the third and the Lady Bisons led 60-57 after three. The Lady Bisons led by as much as seven on two occasions in the fourth quarter and they took a 76-70 lead with 2:22 to play on a lay-in by Sydnie Jones.
Taylor Hedrick started the final push for SWOSU with back-to-back three-pointers to make it a two-point game before
Tyra Aska got to the basket and scored to tie the game at 78-78 with 1:09 to play.
SWOSU got two defensive stops in the final minute, the first with 47 seconds left as they forced the Lady Bisons into a missed shot and Aska cleared the rebound for the Lady Dawgs. After Harding committed a foul, SWOSU's inbounds play setup
Shalie McAlister, who scored a basket off a feed from
Hayden Priddy with 19 seconds to play.
Harding's Sydney Layrock got fouled with seven seconds to play and made one of two free throws, with the Lady Bisons grabbing the rebound and getting one last shot at the basket, which was poked away by SWOSU as time expired, lifting the Lady Bulldogs to the upset win at home.
Hailey Tucker led the Lady Bulldogs with 19 points, seven rebounds, two steals, two blocks and one assist in 32 minutes of action while battling foul trouble.
Taylor Hedrick chipped in 18 points in 19 minutes off the bench and
Tyra Aska put up 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Hayden Priddy also had a balanced stat line with eight points, nine rebounds, three assists and one block while playing the full 40 minutes for a fourth straight game.
"I was really proud of our resiliency and how we fought the whole game," SWOSU Head Coach
Kelsi Musick said following the game. "We were able to mix up our defense and then players made plays down the stretch. I'm really proud of the effort put forth by our team tonight, especially with our freshmen stepped up in key moments."
SWOSU (11-6, 7-4 GAC) now turns their attention to the NCAA Division II Basketball Showcase, which makes an appearance in Weatherford on Saturday as the Lady Bulldogs host No. 17 Arkansas Tech at 11:00 am inside the Pioneer Cellular Event Center.
