Late Scoring Drought Dooms App State in Nail-Biter

MOBILE, Ala. - A late scoring drought in the fourth quarter doomed Appalachian State University women's basketball (5-13, 3-4 SBC) in a nail-biting 54-52 setback to South Alabama (13-5, 6-1 SBC) on Saturday afternoon in the Mitchell Center.

LaPresha Stanley scored a game-high 15 points while tying a career-high with nine boards and dishing out a team-high four assists. The freshman did a stellar job guarding the Jaguars'  Savannah Jones, holding the guard to a season-low two points on 1-for-6 shooting and three turnovers. Jones came into the game averaging a team-high 16.5 points per game during conference play and shooting 50 percent from the field. Nicola Mathews continued her solid shooting on the road as she scored 13 points on five buckets including three trifectas. Tierra Wilson rounded out the leading scorers with eight points and added four rebounds. 

App State played perhaps its best defense of the season and indeed conference play limiting South Alabama to a season low in points at home and during league action. The 54 points scored is 21.5 points below the Jaguars' Sun Belt average as they were third in the conference in scoring during SBC competition, averaging 75.5 points per contest. Also, the defense shut down the USA 3-point shooting attack, limiting it to 2-of-19 from 3-point range. The two 3-pointers are a season low for USA after it came into the game making an average of 10 trifectas during Sun Belt action, which was tied for the highest in the league. 

Appalachian had USA right where it wanted them, holding a three-point lead going into the fourth quarter before pushing the lead to six, 46-40, with 9:03 left in the game thanks to a layup from Armani Hampton. After three straight free throws from the Jaguars cut the lead to three, 46-43, both teams wouldn't score over the next 3:11 until Hampton scored again off another offensive rebound to extend the lead to five, 48-43. With the momentum and a chance to snap USA's conference unbeaten record at home, the Jaguars clamped down on defense holding the visitors to a 1-for-7 stretch and a 4:50 scoring drought that helped USA put together an 11-4 run the rest of the way to seal the win. Down 52-49 with 34 seconds left in the game, the Apps went for the tie on two occasions but both fell short. Wilson's 3-pointer with :02 left stopped the scoring drought but it was too little, too late.

App State started the game off slow with USA jumping out to a 6-2 lead in the first 2:53 of the contest before the Black and Gold responded with a 6-2 run of its own to tie up the game, 8-8. Maya Calder started the surge with a free throw before Mathews hit a jumper and 3-pointer to cap off the run. App continued the spurt highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers from Lainey Gosnell and Stanley to end the period with a 14-10 advantage. 

Despite the four-point lead, USA still shot 50 percent in the first quarter, but the App defense stymied its opponents in the second quarter as the Jaguars were held to just eight points on 3-of-12 shooting and 0-of-6 from deep. Appalachian hit three of four shots after starting 1-of-4 in the second period to push the lead to seven, 23-16. App State held USA to just four points over the last 5:19 of the half including a 3:33 scoring drought starting at the five-minute mark. Wilson's 3-pointer with 27 seconds left gave the Black and Gold their largest lead of the game at eight, 28-20, before a field goal by Antoinette Lewis sliced the gap to six before the horn.

App held USA to just 22 points in the first stanza, which equaled a season low in a half for the Jaguars when they scored 22 in the first half against North Carolina State earlier this season. 

The Jaguars started the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 29-28 lead before Stanley stopped the momentum with a pair at the line to help App retake the lead. USA hit five straight shots midway through the period, but App answered the final three field goals to stay within one, 38-37, following a bucket from Jones. Mathews capped off Appalachian's best shooting stretch of the game, as she hit a pair of 3-pointers over the final 2:33 of the quarter to push App to a 43-40 edge going into the final frame, giving the Mountaineers a 5-of-7 stretch over the last 5:01 of the period.

App State held the rebounding edge, 40-36, including a 13-9 in offensive rebounding. App State also did a great job of protecting the ball with just 10 turnovers, the fewest in a game this season. But the Jaguars outscored the Mountaineers' reserves, 21-7. Lewis led the charge as she scored 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Chyna Ellis scored 13 points with eight rebounds. USA's two leading scorers in Ellis and Jones scored a combined 15 points on 7-of-17 shooting. 

The Apps will look to even the weekend at 1-1 against Troy on Monday at 6 p.m. (EST).