PDF Box HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Senior
LiAnn McCarthy scored a game-high 25 points, freshman
Cassidy Barrios had 18 and the Nicholls State University women's basketball team drained a season-best 10 3-pointers to pick up its first road win of the season with a 67-63 victory over Sam Houston State Wednesday night at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
With the win, Nicholls improved to 4-10 overall and 2-2 in the Southland. The Colonels have won two straight in the series against Sam Houston (7-8, 3-2 SLC), which had won the previous six matchups.
McCarthy's season-high 25 points came on 7 of 10 from the field and 2 of 5 from behind the 3-point line. Nicholls hit seven 3-balls in the first half to tie its single-game high for the season and then added three more in the second half. Barrios was 4 of 8 from downtown and had a team-high eight rebounds,
Taylor Morrison made a pair of 3s, while
Hope Pawlowski, who had a career-high seven steals, and
Karrington Brown each made one.
The game was tied at 37-all at the half, but the Colonels opened the third quarter with 3-pointers from Morrison and Barrios. Nicholls held the lead the entire period before Sam Houston briefly gained the advantage at 51-49 at the 8:39 mark in the fourth.
The Colonels went back up with a 3-pointer by Barrios and McCarthy followed up with three straight buckets for a 58-51 lead. Sam Houston cut the deficit to one with less than two minutes remaining before the game turned into a free throw contest.
McCarthy was good on a pair at the stripe to make the score 63-60, and the teams then traded a free throw on the next two possessions to keep the Colonel advantage at three points. The defense then picked up a turnover, and Barrios sank two clutch free throws with 28 seconds remaining to make the count 65-60.
Sam Houston scored on a layup with 14 ticks on the clock and fouled immediately, putting Pawlowski at the line. Pawlowski missed both, but came up with a big play on defense to help force another Bearkat turnover. Pawlowski was put back on the line with three seconds to go, and after missing the first, sank the second to put the game on ice at 67-63.
Both teams shot 42 percent for the game, helped by each shooting over 50 percent in the first half. Sam Houston held a 17-l4 lead after the first, but McCarthy shot a scorching 6 of 7 in the opening 20 minutes to help even the score at the break.
Sam Houston was led by Angela Beadle with 18 points, Shernise Robertson with 16 and Amanda Barnes scored 14.
The Colonels will wrap up their road trip Saturday at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 4:30 p.m.
