NEWARK, Del. – The University of Delaware outscored the Towson University women's basketball team 13-8 in overtime and claimed a 69-64 win on Sunday afternoon in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. The two teams battled through 11 ties and 12 lead changes as the Tigers lost the heartbreaker.
THE BASICSDelaware 69, Towson 64 (OT)
Bob Carpenter Center, Newark, Del.
HOW IT HAPPENED- Delaware took an 11-6 lead in the first quarter on Makeda Nicholas' jumper with 5:23 showing on the clock. That was the last points of the quarter for the Blue Hens. The Towson defense clamped down and closed the quarter on a 7-0 run. Towson held a 13-11 advantage after 10 minutes of play as freshman guard Sianni Martin scored the final four points of the stanza.
- The Blue Hens (9-7, 4-1 CAA) opened the second quarter on an 11-2 run and took a 22-15 lead with 5:07 left in the stanza. Courtni Green sank three three-pointers during that scoring stretch for Delaware. Towson responded with an 8-2 run of its own and cut the Delaware lead to one, 24-23 with 1:21 left in the quarter. Junior guard Raven Bankston had four points during that run. The Blue Hens scored the final four points of the quarter and took a 28-23 lead at the half.
- A jumper from Nicholas gave Delaware a 36-28 lead with 5:57 to play in the third quarter. That was Delaware's largest lead of the game. Towson responded with an 8-4 run which cut the Blue Hens' lead to three, 40-37 with 3:28 left in the stanza. Redshirt sophomore guard Raine Bankston had four points during that scoring stretch. The two teams traded points as Raven Bankston hit a pair of free throws with 50 seconds left that gave Towson a 43-42 edge. That was the Tigers' first lead since the first quarter. Alecia Bell hit one of two from the foul line with five seconds to play and the two teams were deadlocked at 43-43 after three quarters.
- The story of the fourth quarter was ties as the two teams fought through six tie scores in the 10 minute quarter. Delaware held the largest lead of the quarter after a bucket made it 49-45 with 6:37 left on the clock. Raine Bankston gave Towson a 56-54 lead with 19 seconds to play. However, she was only able to hit one of two from the foul line and that set the stage for Delaware getting a bucket with five seconds left that sent the game to overtime.
- Delaware scored five of the first nine points in the extra session and took a 61-60 lead with 2:21 to play. A Raven Bankston jumper put the Tigers (5-11, 2-3 CAA) back on top, 62-61 with 2:14 to go. Four straight points gave the home team a 65-62 advantage with 1:05 left in the game. Raine Bankston had a jumper with 56 seconds to play that pulled the Tigers to within one, 65-64. Unfortunately that was the last points the Tigers scored in the game. Delaware went 4-for-4 from the foul line in the final 15 seconds to seal the 69-64 win.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE- Towson recorded double digit steals for the fourth straight game and fifth time in the last six games as the Tigers finished with 13 swipes to Delaware's five. Sophomore center Daijha Thomas had a career-high five steals.
- Four Tigers scored in double figures led by Raven Bankston's 21 points. Raine Bankston had a season-high 15 points and seven rebounds.
- Senior guard Dominique Johnson played in her 100th career game. She finished with 10 points.
- Towson won the rebounding battle, 43-41.
- Delaware was led by Green's 20 points while Nicholas had 17 points and 17 rebounds.
The Tigers are back in action when they welcome James Madison to SECU Arena on Friday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m.
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