JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - A Leanne Watson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) free throw with 18 seconds remaining in the contest gave the Wolves all they needed as they took down Carson-Newman, 73-70, in overtime for their third consecutive South Atlantic Conference victory.
Newberry (9-5, 4-2 SAC) took a 12 point lead over Carson-Newman (5-10, 1-4 SAC) with 5:19 left in the first period in what looked like a sure fire Wolves win. But a 10-0 run by the Eagles to close out the half sent the scarlet and gray into their first overtime period of the year.
During extra time the Wolves picked up a four point lead after a Watson layup and ensuing free throw with just over a minute to go. But a pair of free throws by Zoriah Williams (Calera, Ala.) followed by a Williams put back tied up the game with :40 to play. Watson was fouled on the ensuing inbound pass and nailed her second of two free throw attempts to put Newberry up one.
Eagle senior Mandy Mendenhall (Kingston Springs, Tenn.) missed a potential game winning jumper with Leeara Creet (Brisbane, Australia) grabbing the defensive rebound for Newberry. Creet then hit two foul shots with two ticks left on the clock for the win.
“It feels great to get a win in an overtime game like this one,” said Newberry head coach Sean Page. “We came on the road to a tough environment and got it done and that's something I don't think we could have done a month ago which says something about our growth as a team.”
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with eight ties and five lead changes with the Wolves ultimately heading into the break with a five-point, 32-27 advantage. Newberry held a lead the entire second half until the big Carson-Newman run tied things up.
Newberry was led in scoring by Helen McKinney (Owensboro, Ky.) who earned her third double-double of the year with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Watson was right behind with a double-double of her own, putting in 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Briana Johnson (Irmo, S.C.) also scored in double-digits with 13 points while Creet picked up nine rebounds and eight points.
“It was probably our best team effort of the year,” added Page. “We had nine kids score and five get eight points or more which is huge for us. We had people step up in big situations, especially Leanne and Keisha Henderson (Columbia, S.C.) who both unquestionably had their best games of the year.”
The Wolves allowed 27 offensive rebounds to the Eagles, giving Carson-Newman 17 second chance points. Newberry did ultimately win the rebound battle, 55-51.
“This game shows how much we've grown but we still have a long way to go,” said Page. “We don't want to be playing our best basketball now but we want to be playing it in March.”
Newberry will return after going 2-0 on the road as the Wolves take on SAC opponent Wingate this Wednesday, Jan. 19, at 6 p.m.
