WAXAHACHIE, Texas -- In what was otherwise a statistically even contest throughout, a late Graci Harris triple and a corporate 12-of-14 effort at the charity stripe powered the John Brown University women's basketball team to a 52-51 win at Southwestern A.G. (Texas) inside the Sheaffer Center on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 6).
The win extends a now-program record streak to open Sooner Athletic play as the Golden Eagles (10-3, 7-0) have shattered through the previous mark of five consecutive. After starting the season 2-3, the Blue and Gold have pieced together eight straight wins – the longest stretch of wins since the 2013-14 campaign.
Opening the fourth quarter in a nine-point deficit, the Lions (7-5, 4-3) rallied on a 12-2 run over the first 5:23 of the period to take a one-point lead, 44-43. Then, in the final 4:36 of the contest, the Golden Eagles finished 6-of-8 at the line and used the huge Harris triple to break a 48-all tie.
Senior Tarrah Stephens – who led all players with 16 points, scoring 10 at the line – split her free throws with 72 seconds remaining. While the Lions would hit a triple to pull within one, Neely Tilley-Bedick's shot at the buzzer wouldn't fall as the visitors escaped Waxahachie with a win for the fourth time in its last four tries.
JBU has now won six straight over the Lions after suffering three consecutive losses from 2018-2020. John Brown improved to 22-5 all-time versus SAGU.
Four triples, including a pair from junior Emily Sanders, ignited a second quarter that featured JBU netting four of its five buckets from long range, all while holding Southwestern A.G. to 3-of-13 (23 percent) from the floor to take a 28-20 lead into the intermission.
The rebounding was slightly in favor of the visitors, 30-29, as was the turnover margin, 13-11. While both teams shot well below 40 percent, the Golden Eagles converted 86 percent of its free throws (12-of-14) and allowed the hosts to hold the lead for a mere 3:38 (9.1 percent) of the afternoon.
Senior Natalie Smith was the only other Golden Eagle to finish in double-digit scoring as she became the 20th player in program history to surpass the 1,000-point career mark with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting, all coming from behind the arc. Harris finished with nine points and joined Smith with three helpers apiece.
Rylee Lavender and Agar Garcia scored 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Lions as Agar completed the double-double with a game-high 13 rebounds, accounting for 45 percent of SAGU's rebounding effort. The hosts attempted just five free throws, connecting on three.
The Golden Eagles return home to Bill George Arena for its 2024 debut on Thursday night (Jan. 11) when they welcome Southwestern Christian (Okla.) to Siloam Springs for a 6 p.m. contest. The squads will face off live on the SAC Sports Network.
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