MOBILE, Ala. ? The University of South Alabama scored four points in the final eight seconds Thursday to rally from a 10-point second-half deficit and earn a 66-64 non-conference women’s basketball victory over Southern Mississippi at the Mitchell Center.
The Lady Jags ? who improved to 3-0 for the second straight season ? caused more than 20 turnovers for the third time in as many outings to overcome a 29.7 field-goal percentage after the break.
Trailing by six with 46 seconds to go, Shakira Nettles hit a layup and was fouled. She missed the free throw, but Shaniece Brunner grabbed the rebound and found Nettles for another layup seven seconds later to make it a two-point game.
After the Golden Eagles missed two free throws, Jessica Starling tied the contest with a layup eight seconds before the final buzzer. USM (2-1) called time-out, but Nettles stole the ball on the inbounds attempt and was fouled on a drive to the basket ? she would make both foul shots with 4.5 seconds to go to provide the final margin of victory.
Starling finished with 24 points, five rebounds and four steals, while Nettles collected 16 points, five boards and four assists. They were the only two Jags in double figures scoring.
“I couldn’t be more excited for our team,” USA head coach Rick Pietri said. “This is a great win against a team that is picked to win Conference USA. They’re a good team with excellent players, but I think the efforts of Shakira and Starling raising their games in the last eight minutes is really what was responsible for us getting this win tonight.”
The Lady Jags would rally behind the efforts Starling. In addition to converting a three-point play with seven minutes left after USM went up 10 points ? the largest advantage for either team on the evening ? she made it a three-point game, 59-56, with 4:13 remaining with a trey from the left wing. The Golden Eagles built the lead back to six points in the final two-and-a-half minutes on a Tanesha Washington basket, but Starling answered with a layup one minute later to keep the Jags within striking distance.
She would finish the contest 10-of-19 from the floor, which included hitting three shots from three-point range.
The Golden Eagles and Lady Jags traded the lead early in the second half, with USA extending to a 43-39 edge with 17:44 to go when Starling connected on a three-pointer, before USM put together a 12-0 run for its largest lead.
Amber Eugene turned an offensive rebound into a layup with 14:44 remaining to cut the USM deficit to one before she gave the Golden Eagles the lead almost two minutes later with a steal and a lay-in. Washington connected on a three from the left corner ? USM’s only one of the game ? to push the advantage to four points, with Andrea Barber sinking two foul shots and Candace Rucker adding a layup for a 51-43 edge with just over 11 minutes to go.
Stephanie Helgeson later scored twice in a 26-second span to give the Golden Eagles their largest lead, 57-47, with more than eight minutes left.
Helgeson paced USM with 18 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, while Washington scored 11 and Eugene chipped in with 10. The latter two combined for 15 boards as well, giving the Golden Eagles a 47-37 advantage on the glass.
The Jags forced 22 turnovers with the aid of 13 steals, though, and the held USM to under 43 percent shooting overall as well.
USA’s Karina Sproal recorded seven points and a team-leading six rebounds, and Brittney Rutledge scored seven points on 3-of-3 shooting from the floor.
Neither team was ahead by more than five points in the opening half, with the lead changing hands on three occasions to go along with five ties. The Lady Jags went up 13-8 with just under 14 minutes left on a three from Starling, but USM came back to tie the score 14-14 two minutes later. USA would push the advantage back to four three times, however the contest was knotted 24-24 with less than seven minutes to go when Eugene hit a layup.
Each team scored on its next possession before Rutledge put the Jags up five, 31-26, with five-and-a-half minutes remaining with a lay-in and a three-pointer in a nine-second span thanks to a steal by Starling.
The Lady Jags led 36-32 at the half after connecting on five treys, offsetting the Golden Eagles’ edge inside ? USM had a 21-16 rebounding advantage with 22 of its points coming in the paint.
The Lady Jags close out a season-opening four-game homestand with a 7:05 p.m. contest against Mercer Monday.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
?USA?
