DAHLONEGA – The No. 7 University of North Georgia (UNG) women's basketball team pulled out a thrilling 71-70 win over Augusta at the UNG Convocation Center at Lynn Cottrell Arena Saturday afternoon.
The win moved UNG to 16-1 (6-1 Peach Belt) on the season and lifted the Nighthawks to sole possession of first place within the conference for the time being.
On an emotional and important day in which UNG and all of college basketball celebrated the legendary Tennessee head coach Pat Summit and her battle with Alzheimer's, a win felt doubly special for the Nighthawks.
During We Back Pat Week, head coach
Buffie Burson took the time to reflect on her relationship with the disease that took the lives of each of her beloved parents. Prior to Saturday's game, she
shared on social media how important it is to raise awareness for Alzheimer's and continue to fight a disease that has affected so many people across the world.
On the day when the Nighthawks donned "We Back Pat" purple warm up shirts (the official color of the Alzheimer's Association) and a large contingent of UNG fans sported purple gear behind the home bench, it was the royal blue and white jerseys that pulled out an emphatic win.
Facing an Augusta team that had won three of the last five meetings and swept the season series last year, the Nighthawks had plenty of motivation to play with the tenacity they did on Saturday.
After the first quarter, UNG led 23-14 and it appeared this game might be headed for a similar result as many of the Nighthawks 15 previous wins did; a double-digit victory.
Senior guard
Ansley Hall was tremendous in the first quarter, scoring seven of UNG's first 11 points. She closed the quarter with 10 points and three assists.
While the Jaguars chipped back in the second quarter, UNG still held a comfortable 40-32 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter however, Augusta began to mount a comeback.
Although the Jaguars only out-scored the Nighthawks 14-13 in the 10-minute stretch, the momentum shifted as Augusta switched to a full court press defensively just before the quarter concluded. Buckets were getting harder to come by for UNG. The Nighthawks led by as many as 15 points in the third quarter, but looked up and only saw a 53-46 advantage on the scoreboard when it was over as the Jaguars closed on an 8-0 run.
In the fourth quarter, Augusta got back in the game quickly. A three-pointer from Mone Florence cut a five-point deficit to just two with 8:50 to play. Florence scored again just a few plays later to cut the deficit to a one-point lead.
As the Jaguars charged back, UNG's offense began to sputter. The Nighthawks went 2-for-12 from the floor in the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter which included an 0-for-8 stretch. With 3:25 remaining in the game, Augusta tied the contest at 61-61.
The Jaguars snagged their first lead of the game with 2:31 left on the clock at 62-61 as Yamani Paul knocked down a free throw. Augusta had successfully completed a 15-point second half comeback.
UNG retook the lead 63-62 on the other end with a pair of free throws from sophomore forward
Kendall Emener. Then Augusta hit a layup the next time down the floor. Hall answered with a tough, driving layup of her own to pull her team back in front 65-64 with 1:48 left.
The next time down, Hall got fouled and split the free throws to make it a two-point ballgame with under a minute left. As was the case during the Jaguars' entire climb back into the contest, a clutch three from Florence lifted Augusta back in front once again 67-66 with 50 seconds left.
Desperately needing a bucket, Burson called a timeout and drew up a play. It led to a
clean hook shot in the paint for graduate forward
Emily Trushel who calmly knocked down the shot to give UNG a 68-67 lead with 40 seconds remaining.
After getting a stop defensively, Hall split another pair of free throws to give the Nighthawks a slightly greater edge at 69-67. However, Quinasia Abercrombie drew a foul on the ensuing possession for the Jaguars and tied the game with two makes at the line.
With only 12 seconds left to play in the game, Burson called her final timeout. She pulled a wrinkled piece of paper out of her pocket that had a play scribbled on it. While only the members of the huddle know what was actually written on the sheet, the next inbound for UNG was a beautifully scripted set piece.
Trushel inbounded the ball to Hall at the top of the key and placed herself behind Emener on the nearside block. From the opposite block, graduate guard
Caroline Martin (who had torched the Jaguars defense in the game) curled along the baseline around Trushel and Emener towards the left wing. Augusta surely thought the ball was going to UNG's leading scorer, but it was a decoy.
Instead, Emener turned and set a screen on Trushel's defender. Trushel curled toward the right-side elbow but planted her foot and reversed direction as soon as she arrived. Her defender was completely out of position. Hall bounced it to Trushel on the left elbow instead. With her defender on her back hip, Trushel received the ball and turned towards the basket in one smooth motion. Emener lured her defender away and out of the helping position, allowing Trushel an easy layup on the left side. The forward (who famously hit a buzzer beater on this same floor last season against Georgia College) lifted the ball off the window and
into the basket.
After the perfect play, UNG led 71-69 with only five seconds left for Augusta. The Jaguars called timeout and set up a play of their own.
Autumn Phillips received the ball at the top of the arc, drove to her right off a screen and turned towards the basket as precious seconds ticked off the clock. She wiggled between her defenders and threw up a shot at the buzzer that fell short. Except a blocking foul was called on Hall before the shot.
Phillips went to the line with a chance to tie the game with .04 seconds remaining but she missed the first free throw. She made the second, Trushel inbounded the ball to Hall and the buzzer went off as the Nighthawks had successfully pulled out the gritty win.
Trushel finished the game with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists. In the dismal fourth quarter that UNG suffered through, Trushel went 2-for-2 from the floor in the final 40 seconds of the win.
Hall's big night ended with a game-high 19 points as she went 5-for-11 from the floor and 7-for-9 at the charity stripe. She facilitated the UNG offense as well to the tune of a game-high eight assists in the victory.
Martin was the go-to scorer for the Nighthawks in the middle stages of the game. She finished the outing with 18 points and nine rebounds which was tied for a team high with Emener who was rebound and one basket shy of a double-double with eight points and nine boards.
As a team, UNG shot 36.8 percent from the floor and 27.8 percent from downtown. Both marks are the second-lowest in a game this season. Yet, after going 2-for-12 to start the fourth quarter and 0-for-8 before the final two minutes, the Nighthawks went 3-for-3 from the floor when it mattered most. UNG's team effort was also highlighted by a season-high 49 rebounds and a season-low eight turnovers.
Now the Nighthawks will get ready for another home matchup at the UNG Convocation Center, this time against USC Aiken. Tip off against the Pacers takes place Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 5:30 p.m.
