(Prescott, AZ) With their playoff hopes on the brink and needing a win to stay in contention for a postseason berth, the Park University Gilbert women’s basketball team overcame a 17-point deficit and won with .06 seconds left to defeat Embry Riddle Aeronautical University 76-73 in Prescott, Ariz., this afternoon at the ERAU Activity Center.
With the win the Bucs now 6-5 in conference play, sit in sole possession of third place in the GSAC with two games remaining. They are a game ahead of Hope International and Benedictine Mesa.
This was a huge win for the Bucs as Embry Riddle was one of the hottest teams in the conference over the last two weeks and they are the only team to beat first place Arizona Christian in conference so far this season.
Things did not look good early as Embry Riddle opened up a 13-point lead over the last 6:42 of the first quarter as they outscored the Bucs 16-2 during that span. The Bucs only shot 25 percent from the floor in the quarter.
The second quarter was a little better as Embry Riddle increased their lead to as many as 17 points. But despite shooting 28 percent, the Bucs cut the deficit by one to trail by 12 heading into halftime. The first half shooting woes could be seen in Bucs leading scorer Savannah Huerta who did not score a point in the first half and was 0-8 from the floor and 0-5 from three.
The second half was a different story for the Bucs and for Huerta.
In the third quarter, the Bucs shot 53 percent from the floor and 62 percent from three-point range. Huerta scored six points on two three-point baskets in the game and the Bucs cut the lead to eight heading into the final frame.
ERAU dropped a three-point shot to start the fourth quarter and take an 11-point lead 66-55. But the Eagles rim had a lid on it for the next 5:43 of the game and the Bucs went on a 14-0 run to take the lead. 70-66. The Eagles would not go away and a 7-3 run tied the game at 73 with under 30 second remaining. The Eagles looked to take the final shot, but was called for an offensive foul on a screen by Zahkira King and it gave the Bucs the ball with 6.5 seconds to go. Head Coach Ben York called a time out and advanced the ball to the Bucs end which is allowed in the women’s game.
Then the excitement of the finish started. Kayla Schroeder inbounded the ball to Alynna Palacios who dribbled over and handed off to Huerta in the flow of the Bucs motion offense. As time ran down Huerta dribbled to the top of the key beyond the three-point line and put up a three-point shot with two seconds remaining and hit nothing but nylon as the ball went through the basket with .6 second remaining on the clock.
The Buccaneers were in a similar situation to start the conference season when the made a furious comeback on OUAZ only to see them not take a time out and hit a buzzer beating layup, But with only .6 seconds on the clock, ERAU head coach Mike Trujillo had no choice but to call a time out and advance the ball to the frontcourt to have a chance. The Eagles shot at the end came up short and the Bucs come back to Gilbert with a critical win towards their postseason hopes.
Huerta scored 14 points in the final quarter to finish with 20 points after not scoring in the first half. She hot 4-9 from beyond the arc in the final quarter. She finished with six three-point shots made on the afternoon as she leads the country in three-point basket per game. She is also just two three-point baskets from breaking the school single season record for three-point shots made by teammate Kayla Schroeder last season.
Aubry Saleapaga had 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists in one of her most complete games so far in conference.
Palacios had 10 points, eight rebounds and five steals. The five steals vaulted Palacios to the top of the Bucs single season steals list as she now has 86 steals for the season one better than Elise Young in the 2019-20 season. Palacios broke the record in seven fewer games than Young in the Bucs inaugural season. She is averaging 4.1 steals per game which is second best in the country.
The Bucs finish the regular season next week with a road contest at Arizona Christian and then finish the season with a home game against Benedictine Mesa, The Bucs lost to all three teams earlier in the season but need two wins next week to guarantee a postseason berth. The Bucs control their destiny. Two wins and you’re in, anything less and then you will need help. The Buccaneers contest at ACU starts at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, February 12 at the ACU Events Center and the Saturday home game with Benedictine will start at 12 p.m. at Chandler-Gilbert Community College.
Press Release courtesy of Park University Athletics – Preston English
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