Nia Johnson
70
Winner Delta State DSU 16-9 (11-7 GSC)
66
Valdosta State VSU 17-8 (11-6 GSC)
Winner
Delta State DSU
16-9 (11-7 GSC)
70
Final
66
Valdosta State VSU
17-8 (11-6 GSC)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Delta State DSU 17 12 13 28 70
Valdosta State VSU 14 17 11 24 66

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Matt Jones

Lady Statesmen extinguish Lady Blazers 70-66; Johnson leads DSU with 17 points

VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Delta State University women's basketball team used a 14-5 run to erase a seven-point deficit in the final 2:41 of the game to defeat Valdosta State University, 70-66, On Saturday, Feb. 16 at The Coliseum. The victory clinched a spot for DSU in the upcoming Gulf South Conference Tournament.
 
Nia Johnson's 17 points led the Lady Statesmen (16-9, 11-7 GSC), who scored 21 points off the Lady Blazers' 17 turnovers en route to the win. Kirstin Brown chipped in with 12 points and nine rebounds with Frederica Haywood adding 11 points and four rebounds.
 
Maddy Corazza led VSU and all scorers with 18 points.   

THE BASICS:
Score:  Delta State 70 | Valdosta State 66
Records: Lady Statesmen 16-9, 11-7 GSC | Lady Blazers 17-8, 11-6 GSC
Series: Delta State leads 39-10; 14-5 in Valdosta, Ga.
Location | Time: The Coliseum | 2 PM EST
Get Social: Twitter - @DeltaStateWBB | Facebook – DSUStatesmen | Instagram – DSUAthletics

HOW IT HAPPENED
  • With points at a premium, the Lady Statesmen trailed the Lady Blazers, 11-9, after a Zyaire Ewing jumper leading into the 4:07 media timeout.
  • An 8-3 run to the end the first period, with all eight points coming from Nia Johnson, gave Delta State a 17-14 advantage.
  • Four points from Kirstin Brown helped the Lady Statesmen maintain a 24-21 lead with 5:04 to play in the second quarter,
  • Kendra Green's 3-pointer with :24 seconds left in the half put the Lady Blazers up by two, 31-29, at the break.
  • Valdosta State shot 47.6 percent (10-of-21) from the field while holding Delta State to 35.5 percent (11-of-31). The Lady Blazers were 4-of-6 from 3-point range and 7-of-8 from the line. DSU was 2-of-6 from deep and 5-of-7 at the line.
  • Johnson, Ewing and Frederica Haywood led the Lady Statesmen with six points each. Kayla Bonilla led all scorers and VSU with 10 points.
  • VSU opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer from Crystal Townsend and a layup by Maddy Carazza to take a 36-29 lead with 9:10 to go.
  • Ewing's jumper with 8:44 to play in the third put the Lady Statesmen on the board and cut the VSU lead to 36-31.
  • Townsend's layup gave the Lady Blazers a seven-point lead, 40-33, at the 4:49 media timeout.
  • Delta State used an 11-4 run to tie the game at 42-42 at the end of the third quarter.
  • Alyiah Herrod's 3-pointer gave the Lady Statesmen the 45-42 lead with 8:53 to play.
  • An 11-4 run by VSU, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Nari Garner and Bonilla, put the Lady Blazers ahead 53-49 with 5:28 to play.
  • Alondrea Rush's 3-pointer slashed the VSU lead to one, 53-52, with 5:30 left in the game.
  • VSU extended its lead to six, 57-51, on Carazza's 3-pointer with 3:05 remaining.
  • Quantesha Patterson's rebound and put back with 1:55 to play cut the VSU lead to two, 62-60.
  • Ernesha Chatman's steal and breakaway layup tied the game at 62-62 with 57 second remaining on the clock.
  • After forcing a turnover on the defensive end, Brown's rebound and put back gave the Lady Statesmen a 64-62 lead with 31 second to go.
  • DSU again forced a five-count turnover, forcing VSU to foul with 20 seconds left. Johnson sank both shots to extend Delta's lead to four, 66-62.
  • Townsend made 1-of-2 free throws with 14 seconds left to end DSU's 10-0 run and cut the deficit to three, 66-63.
  • After Johnson sank two free throws to put DSU up 68-63, Kendra Bowen nailed a deep 3-pointer with :05 seconds left to cut it to 68-66 for VSU.
  • Johnson calmly sank two more free throws with :04 seconds left to make Delta State's final margin of victory four points, 70-66.       
  • DSU finished the game shooting 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the floor, 6-of-10 from 3-point range and 18-of-21 at the line. VSU shot 42.3 percent (22-of-52) from the field, 9-of-17 from 3-point range and 15-of-17 at the line.
  • The Lady Statesmen scored 21 points off VSU's 17 turnovers while the Lady Blazers five off DSU's 10 miscues.
  • Johnson led the Lady Statesmen with 17 points while Brown finished with. 12 points and nine rebounds. Haywood joined them in double figures as well with 11 points.
  • VSU's Carazza led all scorers with 18 points. Bonilla (17) and Townsend (10) joined her in double figures.  

TURNING POINT
  • Delta State used a 14-5 run over the final 2:41 to erase a seven-point deficit and claim a huge 70-66 road victory.
 
STAT OF THE GAME
  • The Lady Statesmen were 13-of-14 at the free throw line in the second half, including 8-of-8 during the decisive run.  
 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
  • Rush, a senior from Horn Lake, connected on two 3-pointers to push her career total to 205, just one away from assistant coach and All-American Chelsey Rhodes (2002-2006/206) for second place on the career list.     

UP NEXT
  • The Lady Statesmen will host in-state rival Mississippi College on Saturday, Feb. 23 for "Senior Day." Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at Walter Sillers Coliseum. Delta State will honor its 2019 senior class following the game.


 
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