SAN ANTONIO, Texas – The Rogers State women's basketball team used near-perfect free throw shooting to erase an eight-point deficit in the second half rallying for a, 70-60, overtime victory over St. Mary's Thursday night at Bill Greehey Arena.
The Hillcats converted their first 20 free throws finishing 26-of-29 for the game earning a season sweep of the Rattlers, who dropped their first home game of the season after winning eight consecutive.
Mikaila Newton scored a career-high 29 points going 14-of-16 from the charity stripe netting the fourth-most points in single-game history while
Amari Jones set a program record swatting seven shots moving past Logan Froese's record of six set back in 2013.
Breanna Burford got the game started on a perfect note hitting a three pointer before the Rattlers answered with the next eight points until Newton added a trey of her own. Newton capped an 8-2 run for the Hillcats with her second of three triples in the game for a 17-12 advantage with less than eight minutes in the opening half and RSU took a 31-25 lead into halftime.
The Hillcats' margin diminished to one point in the second stanza as StMU held RSU scoreless for nearly six minutes until
Kami Bunch got a jumper to fall. The Rattlers used a 12-2 run to even the score and take a seven-point lead as the clock showed 8:22 to play.
After the deficit was pushed to eight points, 49-41, Burford started the RSU rally with a baseline jumper.
Stacia Payne scored on a layup exactly one minute later and the Hillcats evened the game with 2:25 remaining after a pair of free throws from Jones and a jumper by
Jordan Evans.
The teams traded baskets in the final two minutes but the end of regulation was plagued by a combined four turnovers keeping the game tied and went to overtime knotted, 51-51, when Rattlers' leading scorer Morgan Pullins' open look at the buzzer clanged off the front iron.
RSU dominated the overtime period taking advantage of 18 free-point opportunities for 15 points, including 10 from Newton, to seal the 10-point road win, 70-60.
Pullins and Kiara Etheridge each tallied double-doubles for St. Mary's in the loss with 22 and 21 points, respectively, as the Rattlers fall to 6-6 in the Heartland Conference remaining in the third spot for the conference tournament.
Rogers State (7-13, 5-7 HC) continues the Texas road trip Saturday facing Texas A&M International at 1 p.m. The game can be caught live on the Hillcat Network at
www.rsuhillcats.com/live and on RSU Radio 91.3FM.
