THIBODAUX, La. - Led by the duo of
Lexi Alexander and
Traya Bruce, the Nicholls State University women's basketball team clawed back from a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter to make it a five-point game against Southeastern, but the rally fell short as the Colonels were defeated 57-49 on Saturday afternoon at Stopher Gymnasium.
After scoring 29 points through three quarters, Nicholls (3-9, 0-1 SLC) exploded for 20 points in the fourth to spark the comeback. Facing a 46-29 deficit, the Colonels hit three 3-pointers in the final period - one by
Deonna Brister and two by
Traya Bruce - to trim the advantage to 54-49 with two minutes remaining. But Southeastern (6-5, 1-0 SLC) used its own 3-ball by Hailey Giaratano on the next possession to ultimately put the game away.
Alexander scored a team-high 17 points for the Colonels and swatted away three shots while Bruce did all of her damage from behind the arc, sinking 5 of 9 for 15 points. Brister finished with eight points and seven boards.
Giaratano led the Lady Lions with 15 points and was joined in double figures by Alexius Horne with 13. SLU out shot the Colonels 43 percent to 35 percent, but Nicholls made up a lot of ground in the fourth quarter by hitting 7 of 13 from the field.
The Lady Lions never trailed in the game, leading 10-7 after one quarter and 26-18 at the break. SLU then led by double figures in the entire third quarter.
But after scoring 12 points or fewer in 11 consecutive quarters, the offense clicked for the Colonels in the fourth. While Bruce and Brister scored from the outside, Alexander was able to score in the paint and totaled seven points in the final period.
UP NEXT
Nicholls hits the road for its next three games, starting Thursday, Jan. 5 at Texas A&M-Commerce. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
