UNO rallies past Lady Lions, 61-58

HAMMOND, La. – New Orleans closed the game on a 7-0 run to send Southeastern Louisiana to a heartbreaking 61-58 loss in Southland Conference women’s basketball action Wednesday night in the University Center.

Southeastern (9-16, 4-10 Southland) took the lead into the fourth quarter, but couldn’t hold it down the stretch. UNO (10-13, 6-8 Southland) used the closing run to send SLU to its fourth straight defeat and lessen the Lady Lions’ postseason hopes with four games left in the regular season.

Wednesday’s game was also the Play4Kay game for Southeastern women’s basketball, as the contest was the Lady Lions’ opportunity to dedicate a game to the fight against cancer by participating in the national initiative. Through the combined efforts of all involved in the Play4Kay contest, Southeastern Athletics raised $1,070.55 to be donated to the Kay Yow Fund, named for the late North Carolina State coach who inspired the initiative.

Charliee Dugas and Celica Sterling led SLU with 15 points apiece, while Caitlyn Williams chipped in with 12 points. Dugas led Southeastern with nine rebounds, while Aminat Jubril grabbed eight boards off the bench. Jaclyn Scholvin contributed nine points and a game-high six assists for Southeastern.

New Orleans was led by Dionjhae Thomas, who netted a game-high 18 points off the bench. Shania Woods finished with a double-double for the visiting Privateers, recording 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, though SLU finished with a 38-35 rebounding advantage.

Southeastern committed 20 turnovers in Wednesday’s loss, as Pebbles Pimpton led UNO with four steals and New Orleans scored 21 points off SLU’s miscues. Kayla Thomas and Whitley Larry each had four blocks to pace the Privateers.

Neither team led by more than six during a back-and-forth contest that featured five lead changes and five ties. With 3:57 left, Scholvin sank a pair of free throws to give SLU a 58-54 lead.

After a pair of empty possessions, UNO cut the lead in half on a pair of free throws by Dionjhae Thomas with just over three minutes left. Neither team would score over the next several possessions and everything went the Privateers’ way over the final 90 seconds.

Williams got several close looks that rimmed out and would’ve given SLU a four-point advantage heading into the final minute. After a timeout, Larry got free and put in a shot as the shot clock expired to tie the score at 58-58 with 50 seconds left.

Southeastern got it across half court against UNO’s pressure, but Franklin stepped in front of an Ashailee Brailey pass for a steal. Franklin missed the layup going the other way, but Larry was right there for the put back that gave the Privateers their first lead of the final period with 35.6 seconds left.

Williams had her shot blocked by Larry the other way and Scholvin had to quickly foul Dionjhae Thomas with 19.2 seconds left. Thomas made just one of two, giving SLU a chance to tie on its final possession. Sterling got a good look at a three in the final seconds, but missed it left to allow UNO to hold on for the win.

With four games remaining, Southeastern is not eliminated from postseason contention, but its margin for error has all but disappeared. The Lady Lions are two games out of the top eight finish necessary to advance to the league tournament, scheduled for March 14-17 in Katy, Texas.

Southeastern will hit the road on Saturday, traveling to Abilene Christian for a 1 p.m. league contest. The SLU-ACU game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and can also be heard in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9), online at www.LionSports.net/listenlive and via the Lions Game Day Experience, TuneIn Radio and RadioFX apps.

New Orleans 61 (10-13, 6-8 SLC)
K. Thomas 1-5 1-2 3, S. Woods 3-5 5-8 11, Duncantell 1-6 1-4 3, Pimpton 2-5 0-0 4, Bruce 2-6 0-0 5, Franklin 2-10 5-6 9, D. Thomas 5-7 7-10 18, A. Woods 0-1 0-0 0, Larry 4-10 0-0 8. Totals 20-55 19-30 61.
Southeastern Louisiana (9-16, 4-10 SLC)
K. Williams 0-1 0-0 0, C. Williams 5-10 2-2 12, Dugas 3-10 8-10 15, Scholvin 2-5 5-6 9, Brailey 1-3 0-0 3, Carrier 0-5 2-2 2, Bush 0-0 0-0 0, Sterling 6-13 0-0 15, Jubril 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 18-50 17-20 58.
End of 1st Quarter – UNO 12, SLU 9. Halftime – UNO 28, SLU 27. End of 3rd Quarter – SLU 47, UNO 43. 3-point goals – UNO 2-15 (Bruce 1-3, D. Thomas 1-1, Franklin 0-6, Larry 0-2, Pimpton 0-2, Duncantell 0-1), SLU 5-17 (Sterling 3-9, Dugas 1-2, Brailey 1-2, Carrier 0-4). Technical Fouls – None. Fouled Out – None. Rebounds – UNO 35 (S. Woods 10), SLU 38 (Dugas 9). Assists – UNO 7 (S. Woods 3), SLU 12 (Scholvin 6). Total Fouls – UNO 18, SLU 22. A – 703.