CCU

Women's Basketball Edge Radford in Triple Overtime Thriller, 96-94

       

Women's Basketball Edge Radford in Triple Overtime Thriller, 96-94

 

CONWAY, S.C. - Nikki Reddick scored a career-high 40 points, while junior Crystal Brown poured in 19, as the Coastal Carolina women's basketball team defeated Radford, 96-94 in triple overtime, in Big South action, Saturday evening in Kimbel Arena.

The win was Coastal's second straight and improved its record to 9-8 overall and 4-4 in the Big South Conference. Radford fell to 6-13 overall and 2-6 in the Big South.

Radford was led by Amanda Neby who scored a career-best 29 points, along with 11 boards. Jesse Brunjak (19 points, 10 rebounds), Brandy Allen (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Hanna Statsenka (10 points, 11 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles on the night for the Lady Highlanders.

Radford led most of the second half, but lead by only as much as five points on two occasions. The Lady Highlanders held a four-point lead (69-65) with 28 seconds remaining, until Reddick took over. Reddick hit a jumper with 15 seconds left to make it a two-point game at 69-67. Then after a missed foul shot by Sherri Rickman with six seconds left, Reddick grabed the rebound, and took it coast-to-coast and she laid it in as the horn sounded, sending the game into overtime.

In the first overtime, Coastal would get out to a four point lead at 74-70 with 1:40 remaining. Neby would hit a jumper for RU with 26 seconds left to make the score 76-74. After a miss foul shot, then a foul by Reddick, Brunjak would hit two foul shots to tie the score at 76-76 with 23 seconds left. The game would enter a second overtime period, after Whitney Shearer missed two free throws with 1.8 seconds left.

In the second overtime, Coastal would see an eight-point lead (87-79) with 36 seconds left disappear, as Statsenka capped off a 10-2 run in the final 30 seconds with a jump shot from the corner with one second remaining to send the game to a third overtime.

Reddick would hit four free throws in the third extra period to help CCU to a five-point lead in the period, a lead that they would not relinquish.

Coastal will next host Liberty on Monday at 7:00, while Radford travels to Charleston Southern to face the Lady Bucs on Monday at 7 :00.