Buzzer beater foils upset for Grace
WINONA LAKE, Ind. – With 1.3 seconds remaining on Saturday, Grace’s women’s basketball team thought it had locked up an upset of No. 11 Taylor.
But the Trojans had the final shot, and they made it count. Becca Buchs threw up a leaning prayer off the inbounds play, and her miraculous shot went in to seal Taylor’s 69-68 win.
Brooke Treadway had given Grace the lead on the previous play. After Vironnica Drake’s driving shot misfired, Treadway grabbed the board and finished her layup in traffic for a 68-67 lead with 1.3 seconds left.
The Lady Lancers (10-12, 4-6 Crossroads League) nearly won despite its top two scorers combining to shoot 7-of-24. Drake and Brooke Sugg, who average 33.2 combined points per game, were held to nine points apiece.
Lauren Godfrey picked up the scoring slack, producing a career-high 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting and 4-of-8 on 3-pointers. Kamryn Hostetler also scored 14 points with a trio of 3-pointers.
The first half was classic back-and-forth Crossroads League action. Grace could not have started the game worse, but the team quickly recovered.
The Lady Lancers came up empty on their first nine possessions. Grace fell behind 9-0 and did not score for the first 5:02 of the game.
When Grace finally did score, the points came in bunches. Kaylie Warble and Hostetler made and-1s on back-to-back plays, and Brielle Wilson hit a 3-pointer soon after.
Taylor’s lead was chopped down to 17-13 by the end of the opening period.
Grace went on a 7-0 run early in the second quarter, and a triple from Godfrey tied the score 20-20. After a turnover, Pam Miller scored for Grace’s first lead at 22-21.
The Trojans (17-4, 8-2 CL) responded aptly, using a 13-2 run to open up a 33-24 cushion. But Grace battled right back. Vironnica Drake scored five points late in the quarter, and the Lady Lancers trailed just 36-34 at halftime.
Taylor was forced into 13 turnovers in the first half but owned a plus-seven advantage in rebounds. The Trojans also hit eight triples in the half compared to three for Grace.
The game swung Taylor’s way early in the third quarter with a pair of 5-0 runs, and Grace found itself behind 49-40.
But Grace’s defense locked down Taylor, and Godfrey sparked a comeback. Taylor was held to just two points over the final six minutes of the quarter, and Godfrey hit back-to-back triples. Her last 3-pointer tied the score 51-51 as the teams entered the last stanza.
The sides exchanged small runs to start the fourth quarter, and Grace pulled ahead 59-56 with an 8-0 run. Godfrey and Sugg each hit a 3-pointer, and Pam Miller also scored during the run.
But the Trojans responded and opened up a three-point lead with two minutes remaining.
Drake made a pull-up jumper with 1:36 on the clock to cut Taylor’s lead to one, but both teams misfired on the next possession.
Taylor had a chance to hold the ball after Grace missed a 3-pointer, but good defensive pressure from Drake forced a turnover to give the Lady Lancers a chance.
Grace made good on its chance thanks to Treadway’s clutch layup, but 1.3 seconds proved to be all Taylor needed to win the game.
Both teams shot 44 percent from the floor, but the Lady Lancers only took four free throws. Grace did have 18 assists, its second-most in league play, to go along with 12 steals.
Godfrey had 18 points, 3 assists and 3 boards, and Hostetler had 14 points, 3 assists, 3 boards and 2 steals.
Sugg tallied nine points with five assists, and Drake added 9 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. Treadway had 6 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, Miller made both of her shots for four points, and Wilson added three points and three steals.
The Lady Lancers are on the road next week for their longest two trips of the Crossroads League season. Grace plays at Spring Arbor on Wednesday and at Mt. Vernon Nazarene on Saturday.