Box Score BOX SCORE
The High Point University women's basketball team overcame a late deficit in regulation, but fell to Radford in overtime 79-76 on Friday night at the Millis Center. Guard
Jurica Hargraves led the Panthers with 21 points.
“I thought our effort on the defensive end was really good tonight,” head coach Tooey Loy said. “We didn't give up when we went down by 11 in the second half and really battled the entire game. We got a little careless with the ball and had too many turnovers. It was a great game, unfortunately Radford made a few more plays down the stretch.”
High Point fell to 14-14 overall and 8-7 in the Big South. Radford improved to 14-14 and 11-4 in Big South play.
Senior guard
Amy Dodd added 15 points for HPU and
Shamia Brown had a double-double, 12 points and 11 rebounds. Brown eclipsed the 1,000 point scoring mark for her career, becoming just the fifth player in the HPU DI era to reach the milestone.
Mackenzie Maier had 11 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four blocks. Maier now has 293 career blocks which is a new Big South record.
Radford's Brooke McElroy led all scorers with 23 points. Denay Wood recorded a double-double for the Highlanders with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Trailing by eight, 66-58, with just over two minutes left High Point used a late 8-0 charge to tie the game at 66 all on two free throws by Brown with 22 seconds remaining. Radford had two looks at the basket in the final seconds but RU's Da'Naria Erwin-Spencer hit both shots off the iron as time expired with the two teams still tied.
With HPU leading, 73-70, and 1:39 remaining in overtime, McElroy nailed a three-pointer to tie the game at 73. On Radford's next possession Erica Rivera hit a jump shot to give Radford the lead for good. HPU guard
Erin Reynolds pulled the Panthers to within one, 77-76, with a three with 11 seconds remaining, but Erwin-Spencer hit two free throws to give RU a three-point advantage. Maier had one last chance to tie the game, but her three point attempt bounced off the rim giving Radford the victory.
High Point came out hot on the offensive end to start the game, connecting on five of its first seven shots to take an 11-4 lead. Hargraves and senior
LaTeisha Dean each connected for two before a three on a fast break by Dodd gave HPU a 7-0 lead to start the game and forced an RU timeout. The Panther lead grew to as large as 10 points at 23-13 on a three pointer by Hargraves with 9:46 left in the half.
Down 10, Radford clawed back into the game with a 14-0 run to take a 27-23 lead with 3:25 left in the half. The Highlanders held HPU without a point for 6:31 until Brown connected on a layup to pull the Panthers back within two at 27-25.
The two teams traded baskets in the closing minutes and with 20 seconds left before the break Brown converted a free throw to tie the game at 31-31 heading into halftime. Maier led HPU at the break with seven points while McElroy paced the Highlanders with eight in the opening 20 minutes.
After Radford started the second half with a basket from the free throw line by Kahealani Vick, Hargraves answered on the other end with a three-pointer to put High Point ahead, 34-33 just over a minute into the half. The Highlanders immediately retook the lead with back-to-back baskets by McElroy and Victoria Hamilton to jump ahead, 37-34, with 18:07 remaining.
High Point trailed by just one, 52-51, midway through the second half when Radford went on a 10-0 run to build its largest lead of the game, 62-51, with 6:07 remaining in the game. After an HPU timeout, the Panthers responded back with five-straight points on a three by Hargraves and two free throws by Maier to pull back within six at 62-56 with 3:41 left.
Radford finishes the season at Gardner-Webb on Sunday at 7:00 p.m., in a game between the No. 2 and 3 seeds in the upcoming Big South Tournament. High Point also returns to action on Sunday when the Panthers take on UNC Asheville at 4 p.m. It will be Senior Day for the Panthers.
