MIAMI, Fla. - The University of South Alabama women's basketball team won the FIU Holiday Tournament beating Florida International 81-74 in double-overtime on Friday afternoon at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center.
The Jags took a ten-point lead into halftime before letting the Panthers climb back into the game. FIU eventually took a six-point lead in the fourth quarter and the game went back-and-forth from there before eventually heading into overtime.
After a shaky start to the first overtime period, Antoinette Lewis layed one in to tie the game up with 0.8 seconds on the clock to take it into double-overtime. The Jags scored the first-seven points in the second overtime period and held on for the win.
Lewis put up 13 points and 12 boards en route to back-to-back double-doubles, and her fourth of the season.
Savannah Jones was named tournament MVP after hitting the game-winning shot against New Mexico State and going for 19 points and eight rebounds against Florida International. For the tournament Jones shot 9-of-16 from beyond the arc and averaged 17 points and 6.5 rebounds.
Shaforia Kines was named to the all-tournament team, going for 18 points against FIU and a team-high 17 points against New Mexico State.
South Alabama is 11-0 for the second time in program history, and is off to the best start since the Jags started 12-0 during the 1984-1985 season. South has swept its non-conference schedule for the first time in history, beating teams from nine different conferences.
GAME FACTS
- Damaya Telemaque finished with 11 points, five rebounds and a team-high six assists. It was the fifth time the freshman guard has led the Jags in assists this season.
- The Jags brought in a season-high 57 rebounds in the contest, out-rebounding the Panthers by a 12-point margin.
- South shot 35.3 percent from the floor, 39.4 percent from beyond the arc, and 63 percent from the free-throw line, hitting a season-high 13 three-pointers.
- The Jags bench accounted for 17 points, Alexis Sykes leading the way with 6 points.
- FIU's Paula Orenes put up 20 points in the contest while her teammate, Chelsea Guimaraes put up a game-high 21 points.
- The Panthers went on a 15-0 run during the third and fourth quarters to get back into the game.
NOTES
- South has now won at least 11-consecutive games in a single season for the fourth time in program history. This team is one behind the 1984-1985 team that won 12 in a row, and five wins from matching the all-time program record of 16 straight wins in a season: set by the 1986-1987 team.
- Six straight wins on the road ties the second-longest road-win streak in team history. With one more win on the road the Jags will tie the mark set by the 2003-2004 team.
- The Jags broke a four-game losing streak to Florida International, and are now 12-17 all-time vs. the Panthers.
- This was the first overtime game for the Jaguars since playing at Yale last season on March 24th in the Women's Basketball Invitational, and the first game to go more than overtime period since a triple-overtime winner at Central Florida on Nov. 12, 2011.
- Lewis' double-double marked the seventh of her career, leading the Jags in rebounding for the sixth time this season.
THEY SAID IT
Head coach Terry Fowler
Opening Statement:" This is a tough battling group. I thought we got off to a really good start. I felt like at the end of the second quarter instead of being up by 10, we should have been up by 15. Third quarter, they came out and did a really great job. For us to get back into that game and for us to get it into overtime was just resilient, same thing we had yesterday. Then in double-overtime our kids just kept fighting, they weren't going to be denied. It's exciting."
On being in a situation like this before conference play: "It's crucial, we've been in these games, especially in back-to-back games. I feel like in the Sun Belt, the way the league is shaping up, its going to be these types of games every night."
On what you have learned about the team so far: "Believe. They are going to keep going. These kids just keep fighting, keep battling. Moving forward we will have that same mentality. We understand winning right now and hopefully that will carry forward in league play."
Up next: South Alabama is off until Jan. 3, 2019. The Jags will travel to Appalachian State to take on the Mountaineers at 7 p.m. at the Holmes Center in Boone, N.C.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
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