Feb. 17, 2005
BEAUMONT - Junior Bridgette Brackens poured in a career-high 21 points and sophomore LaToya Carson added 18, but the Lamar women's basketball team was unable to stave off Northwestern State on Thursday night, as the Lady Demons slipped past the Lady Cardinals 74-71 in Southland Conference action at the Montagne Center.
With the loss, which was their sixth straight, the Lady Cardinals fell to 8-15 overall and 2-10 in SLC play. Northwestern State improved to 13-10 on the season with an 8-4 league record.
After trailing by two at the half, NSU tied the scored at 49-49 with 10:02 left to play. Over the next 3:07, the Lady Demons used a 12-4 run to open an eight-point lead (61-53), their largest of the game. Brackens scored the next eight points for Lamar, connecting on two three-pointers and a pair of free throws to cut the NSU lead to three (64-61) with 4:49 on the clock. But with 4:24 left to play, Brackens committed her fifth foul, forcing her to watch from the bench for the remainder of the contest.
Following a pair of Amanda Bennett free throws that put the Lady Demons up 66-61, junior Audrea Samuel scored four straight points for LU to pull the Lady Cardinals within one (66-65) with 3:50 remaining. NSU built its lead back to three points with 25 seconds remaining before Carson answered with a pair of free throws to cut it back to one with 10 seconds left.
NSU's Beth Tallant sank both shots of a double bonus with eight seconds on the clock to put the Lady Demons up three (74-71). On Lamar's ensuing possession, however, Carson lost her handle on a drive to the basket and NSU's Sheronda Bell grabbed the ball to secure the win for the Lady Demons.
The game opened with Bennett hitting a mid-range jumper to give NSU a quick 2-0 lead. Lamar responded with seven straight points to take a five-point lead (7-2). LU maintained its lead for all but 58 seconds of the first half, when the Lady Demons took a short-lived 27-26 lead after a Bennett trey.
Brackens scored four of LU's nine points in the final five minutes of the opening stanza, as the Lady Cardinals entered the locker room with a 35-33 lead.
Brackens, a junior college transfer from Waco, scored 13 of her game-high 21 points in the second half and led Lamar in scoring for the second straight game. She nailed 5-of-8 from three-point range, while also tying a career-best with five rebounds in a career-high 22 minutes of action. Brackens also sank all four free throw attempts.
Carson, a 5-9 guard from Long Beach, Mississippi, dropped in nine points in each half and finished 6-of-15 from the floor. She pulled in five boards and handed out a team-high three assists.
Samuel, a Beaumont native, finished with a dozen points and a season-high eight rebounds. She connected on 4-of-7 field goals and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe. Freshmen Chelsea Gugliotta and Shaquita Coffey each chipped in with six points apiece.
The Lady Cardinals finished the game with a 39.0 field goal percentage (23-of-59) and a 73.1 free throw percentage (19-of-26). LU also hit 6-of-18 (33%) from beyond the arc.
Diamond Cosby led the Lady Demons with 15 points, while Beth Tallant came off the bench to score 14 points and grab 11 rebounds. Tena Matthews and Sheronda Bell each added 12 points, and Chassidy Jones finished with a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
NSU overcame a 30.0% first-half shooting display to shot 45.2% in the second half and finish with a 36.6% clip (26-of-71). Northwestern State was 62.1% from the line (18-of-29), but only 26.7% (4-of-15) from three-point range.
Lamar hits the road for its next game, traveling to San Marcos, Texas to tangle with Texas State on Saturday, Feb. 19. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. in Strahan Coliseum.
