THIBODAUX, La.  – Despite the Nicholls State University women's basketball team leading Sam Houston State for almost the entire duration of the game, the outcome came down to the wire as the Colonels came through with clutch free throw shooting down the stretch to hang on for a 67-64 victory over the Bearkats on Thursday night at Stopher Gym.
 
The win was the Colonels' third straight, improving their record to 7-8 on the year and more importantly, 3-1 in Southland play. It also snapped a six-game losing streak in the series against Sam Houston (3-12, 2-3 SLC), which was the Colonels' longest against any league opponent.
 
Nicholls had three players finish in double figures in scoring, led by Jenny Nash and Ekiya Gray with 15 points each. Shay Arnick added 11 points, all in the first half, while Gray scored all 15 of hers in the final period.
 
Thanks in part to a 10-0 lead to start the game; Nicholls cruised to a 33-28 advantage at the break. But Sam Houston flipped the script to open the second half, using an 8-0 run to take its first lead of the game. With the help of Gray and Nash, Nicholls countered with another 10-0 spurt to regain the lead and never trailed again in the contest. Gray started the run with a putback and added another one between a pair of Nash 3-pointers which put the score at 43-36 Colonels.
 
But Sam Houston did not go away quietly, due mostly to an offensive outpour from Shernise Robertson, who had a game-high 31 points. The Bearkats tied the game four times in the second half, with the final coming at 57-all with less than six minutes remaining.
 
Leading by one, Nicholls took a 61-58 lead after Veronica Ryan, who led the Colonels with five assists, cut through the defense and made a nice pass inside to Gray for a layup. Gray then added two free throws to make the score 63-58 with three minutes left before Sam Houston answered with four points to come within one.
 
With 25 seconds remaining, Nash connected on a pair at the line to push the lead to 65-62. On the next possession, Robertson drew a foul on a 3-pointer with 12 ticks remaining on the clock, but missed on the second attempt to keep the Colonel lead at one.
 
Gray then calmly sank two free throws with 11 seconds on the clock for a 67-64 Colonel lead and Robertson's last-second 3-pointer from the left wing was off the mark as the horn sounded, giving Nicholls its fourth win at home this season.
 
Although Nicholls shot 37 percent from the field and 31 percent from behind the arc, the team combined for a 77.8 percent mark at the free throw line, making 14 of 18. Sam Houston shot 43 percent from the field, but made an abysmal 14 of 29 at the charity stripe.
 
Nash hauled in seven boards as Nicholls outrebounded Sam Houston, 45-34. The Colonels had 17 offensive rebounds, leading to 12 second chance points.
 
Nicholls will host a women's/men's doubleheader on Saturday, Jan. 17, against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The women will go for their fourth consecutive win, with tipoff scheduled for 1 p.m.