SEWANEE, Tenn. – Kayla Antoine led the Tigers with 28 points and nine rebounds as they fell just three points short of the Bob Jones Bruins Monday night in women's basketball action in Greenville, S.C., 80-83.
The Tigers and Bruins played a tight contest as they alternated leads and no team built more than an eight-point lead throughout the game. The Tigers posted 50 points in the paint and tallied an additional 14 points on second-chance points on 13 offensive rebounds.
Cydney Wright tallied 15 points, two rebounds, and an assist, and
Olivia Falvey posted 11 points, six rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Antoine also added three assists and a steal to her stand-out performance.
Lilly Phillips opened the game as she sank a three in the first possession of the game and the Bruins answered just 21 seconds later with a layup, proving to be a preview of the game to come. The Bruins found themselves up six with four and a half minutes left in the period, but another three by Phillips cut the lead in half. Falvey tied the game at 16 for the Tigers with just under two and a half minutes on the clock, the Bruins took the lead again as Shea Sherf of Bob Jones sank three from the charity stripe and then connected for two more from a layup. The Tigers answered with a layup in the paint to end the period, 18-21.
After more back-to-back exchanges, the Tigers held the Bruins to four stops and registered 10 points of their own, gaining the lead 31-27. Wright connected on six of the 10 points. The teams then exchanged two back-to-back threes, Wright sinking another three points. A three and a layup from Bob Jones took the lead right back, but Antoine responded with another jumper. The Bruins then posted five unanswered points off two made layups and a free throw. Antoine posted the last points of the period with another layup in the paint ending the half, 37-40.
Antoine opened the second half cutting the Bruins lead to just one. Sewanee then went on a six-point unanswered run again, gaining the lead and initiating back-and-forth lead changes in the third period. Bob Jones ended on top of the exchange as they ended the period with five unanswered points.
Shay Conn tied the game again with just under eight minutes on the clock for the Tigers, as the Tigers and Bruins stayed competitive until the last seconds of the game. A one-point game with one minute on the clock as both teams fought until the last seconds. Beth Clark of Bob Jones hit a three to pull away by four, but the Tigers found Antoine under the basket for a quick bucket to pull within two. A foul by Sewanee sent the Bruins to the line again with 12 seconds left where they connected for both. The Tigers again connected with Antoine to pull back within two with 3.5 seconds to go. The Tigers sent the Bruins to the charity strip again where they made one of two, but the Tigers were unable to get the last shot off falling in a nail-biter 80-83.
The Bruins hit five threes in the fourth quarter and were 83 percent from the charity stripe for the game, making 19 of 23 which proved to be the difference for the Bruins. The Tigers were only sent to the line twice, collecting three of four.
The Tigers will get a second chance against the Bruins on December 15 as Bob Jones travels to play in Sewanee at 2 p.m. CT. The Tigers then host No. 18 Whitman College on Sunday at 2 p.m. before Christmas break.
