Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Lehigh
Bison Erase 17-Point Deficit in Final Quarter, Beat Lehigh 80-77 in Overtime
1/13/2016 11:44:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell women's basketball erased a 17-point fourth quarter deficit and stayed perfect in the Patriot League at 5-0 with an 80-77 win over Lehigh on Wednesday at Sojka Pavilion. Freshman forward Kaitlyn Slagus hit a 3-pointer to tie the game with two seconds left in regulation, and freshman guard Kyi English connected on a game-winning trey with two second s left in overtime to give the Bison their fifth straight win.
Bucknell trailed by 17 at the half and then 17 again after Lehigh scored the first four points of the fourth quarter to go up 63-46 with 9:07 left in regulation. The Bison needed all of that time to complete the comeback, including a 13-1 run in the final 4:26. Junior forward Claire DeBoer started it with a layup, which was followed by back-to-back buckets from junior forward Sune Swart that cut the lead to six, 69-63. English drove to the hoop for a layup to pull the Bison within four with 49 seconds to play, and following a Lehigh free throw, Slagus scored the final five points in the last 16 seconds.
The Bison scored the first four points of overtime on layups by English and sophomore guard Jacquie Klotz, but the Mountain Hawks scored the next five to take a one-point lead. DeBoer hit a 3-pointer with 1:10 to play, and after Lehigh tied the game, English drained an open corner three. Lehigh had one last chance, but its final shot missed everything.
“I'm proud of this group for their resiliency. To come back and even have a chance to win was a tremendous effort,” said Bucknell head coach Aaron Roussell. “The first 38 minutes are what they were, but for us to come back and give ourselves a chance is a real credit to our players.”
Swart had a huge second half to lead the charge for the Bucknell comeback. For the game, she just missed a double-double with 10 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes off the bench. She had eight points on 4-of-5 shooting and eight rebounds in 11 minutes of playing time in the second half.
For the first time since 2013, five Bucknell players scored in double-figures, including Swart. Klotz recorded her second consecutive double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while DeBoer led all scorers with 23 points and added seven rebounds. Slagus and English tallied 12 points apiece, and Craig led the team with four assists.
Lehigh's standout junior Lexi Martins had a solid game with 11 points and 15 rebounds, but she was held without a field goal while scoring all of her points on 11-of-14 shooting from the foul line. The nation's second leading rebounder, Martins pulled down nine in the first half while helping the Mountain Hawks take a 42-25 lead, but was held to just six over the final two quarters and overtime period. Mann led the team with 18 points and was joined in double-figures by Amina Affini with 14 and Bernadette Devaney with 11.
After being out-rebounded 22-12 in the first half, Bucknell turned the tables after the break. The Bison finished with a 41-38 advantage on the boards to win the rebounding battle for the 15th time in 16 games this season. The teams entered the contest ranked first and second in the Patriot League in rebounding margin.
The Bison have been successful at Sojka Pavilion this season, improving to 6-1 with the win over the Mountain Hawks. They will go on the road for their next contest when they play at Colgate on Saturday at 4 p.m. The Bison are already 3-0 on the road in league play this season.
