(Photos courtesy of East Tennessee State sports information)
Box score
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. –
Melody Doss converted a jumper with four seconds remaining to give Northern Kentucky University a 77-76 victory at East Tennessee State on Monday night.
NKU (9-11 overall, 6-5 Atlantic Sun Conference) trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half and still faced a 76-71 deficit with less than a minute to play.
Tiara Hopper, though, scored two quick baskets to cut the ETSU lead to 76-75 with 19 seconds left on the clock.
NKU's
Kayla Thacker then stole the ball from Serena Clark, giving the Norse a chance to win.
Rianna Gayheart drove the lane, found Doss open near the foul line, and the sophomore buried a jumper to give NKU a 77-76 advantage with four seconds remaining.
ETSU had a final shot, but Clark's short jumper was off target, giving NKU an improbable come-from-behind win and the season sweep of the Buccaneers.
“Our kids continued to battle and chip away at the lead the last 15-16 minutes of the game, and to their credit, they found a way to get the 'W' on the road,” NKU head coach
Dawn Plitzuweit said. “I am very happy for these young ladies as they demonstrated great toughness and poise to pull this one out.”
Hopper led NKU with 21 points, and Doss scored a career-high 15 points. It marked the second time this season Doss hit a shot late in the game to lift NKU to a victory. Her basket at the buzzer gave the Norse a 66-64 win over Youngstown State on Nov. 27.
Jaimie Hamlet added 13 points for the Norse, while Gayheart finished with 11 points and five assists.
ETSU (6-12, 4-7 A-Sun) owned a 49-30 advantage in rebounds, but the Buccaneers turned the ball over 20 times, compared to just nine for NKU. ETSU led by 14 points twice in the first half and settled for a 42-32 advantage at the break.
Going into Monday's game, NKU was 0-11 this season when trailing at halftime.
The Norse shot 51.6 percent from the field in the second half to fuel the comeback. A layup by Hopper with 9:58 cut the ETSU lead to 57-54, and the two teams traded baskets and free throws for the next eight minutes.
A basket by Brianna McQueen with 1:06 left extended the ETSU lead to 76-71, and those would be the final points of the game for the home team. NKU capitalized on two Buccaneer turnovers in the final minute to get in position to win, and Doss buried the jumper that gave the Norse their first-ever A-Sun road sweep.
Tiana Burley led ETSU with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
NKU plays at Lipscomb at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in Nashville, Tenn.
