Dec. 6, 2007
Final Stats
BLUE MOUNTAIN, Miss.--Junior forward Crystal Shelton (Nashville, Tenn./Hume Fogg HS) drew a foul with three seconds remaining and sank both free throws to lift the Christian Brothers University Lady Bucs to a 71-67 win Thursday night at Blue Mountain.
Shelton finished with a game-high 18 points as her free throws provided the 10th and final lead change in a nip-and-tuck game that also featured nine ties and no leads larger than six points. Freshman guard Jen Sneed (Hendersonville, Tenn./Pope John Paul II HS) buried a three-pointer with 1:43 remaining to tie the game up at 67.
Both teams missed shots on their next two possessions, with senior center Ponecia Anderson (Bartlett, Tenn./Bolton HS) blocking a Lana Harris three-pointer with 32 seconds remaining to give the Lady Bucs (6-1) a chance in the waning seconds. With the shot clock down to five seconds, the Lady Bucs passed it to the low post for Shelton, who drew a foul on her post move with one second on the shot clock.
After Shelton's free throws, the Lady Bucs forced a five-second violation before the Lady Toppers (3-6) could pass the ball in. Freshman guard Katie Hume (Memphis, Tenn./Evangelical Christian School) made a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game, and Sneed stole the inbounds pass for her career-high seventh steal to put the game away.
Anderson nearly posted a triple-double for the Lady Bucs with eight points and a game-high nine rebounds to go with career-highs of seven assists and five blocks. Junior guard Erin Nigh (Morristown, Ind./Morristown HS) scored 17 points and grabbed a season-high seven rebounds.
Joy Pierce and Lana Harris scored 12 points each to lead Blue Mountain. Shayla Stroud scored 10, while Kristen Coleman added nine.
The Lady Bucs shot 43.4 percent (23-of-53) from the floor, including 3-of-14 (21.4 percent) from three-point range, while their defense held the Lady Toppers to 31.9 percent (23-of-72) from the floor and 23.8 percent (5-of-21) from three-point range. The Lady Bucs made 68.8 percent (22-of-32) of their free throws, while the Lady Toppers shot 80 percent (16-of-20) at the free throw line.
Blue Mountain out-rebounded the Lady Bucs 45-40 and forced 17 turnovers while committing 15.
The Lady Bucs will be back in action at Canale Arena Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. as they face North Alabama (3-4).
