KWC falls in G-MAC tourney finale
Mar. 7—The Dragons wouldn't be denied Saturday.
No. 5 seed Tiffin capped off its run through the Great Midwest Athletic Conference women's basketball tournament with a 61-57 overtime victory over second-seeded Kentucky Wesleyan College in the championship game in Cedarville, Ohio, earning the league's automatic qualifier to the upcoming NCAA Division II Tournament.
The Panthers (18-5) were in control of the contest early, pulling ahead for a 20-11 lead at the first break and a 33-21 advantage at intermission.
However, the third quarter was when all the momentum shifted.
The Dragons (16-8) outscored Wesleyan 18-2 in the period — including a stretch of 14 consecutive points — to claim a four-point edge heading into the final period. The Panthers made only 1-of-15 shot attempts in the frame, while Tiffin made 7-of-14 shots from the floor.
Tahlia Walton's layup with 4:11 remaining pushed the Panthers back in front, 42-41, followed by both teams trading baskets down the stretch. Lily Miller scored on a layup to put KWC ahead 46-45, and Cali Nolot sank a pair of free throws with 24 seconds left for a three-point lead. Tiffin's Aarion Nichols knocked down a deep 3-pointer in the final seconds to tie the contest at 48, and Nolot's game-winning layup attempt at the buzzer was no good.
Nolot's 3-pointer tied the game at 52 with 2:34 left in overtime, but a 3 by Jensen Hiegel and a midrange jumper from Nichols pushed Tiffin back to a five-point lead. Kaylee Clifford's 3 pulled Wesleyan within 59-57 with 24 seconds left, but the Dragons rebounded their own miss at the other end after winding down the clock, and Savanah Richards made two free throws within the final two seconds to seal the win.
Richards finished with 23 points and six rebounds for Tiffin, which also got 22 points and six boards from Nichols. The Dragons shot 41% from the field despite making just 5-of-22 3-pointers (22.7%), and converted 6-of-10 free throws (60%) with 13 turnovers.
Their tournament victory came one day after upsetting top-seeded and host Cedarville 72-56 in the semifinals.
Jordyn Barga and Nolot scored 10 points apiece for Wesleyan, which shot 35.6% from the field, 4-of-19 from beyond the arc (21.1%) and 11-of-16 from the foul line (68.8%) with 13 floor errors. Both teams reeled in 37 rebounds, with the Panthers holding a slim margin in second-chance points (5-4), points off turnovers (11-9) and fastbreak production (5-2).
While Tiffin takes the league's automatic bid to the Atlantic Regional, Wesleyan will have to wait until Sunday night's selection show to see if it will garner an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
TIFFIN 11-10-18-9-13 — 61
KWU 20-13-2-13-9 — 57
Tiffin (61) — Richards 23, Nichols 22, Watts 6, Hiegel 5, Tate 3, Williams 2.
Kentucky Wesleyan (57) — Barga 10, Nolot 10, Richardson 8, Johnson 7, Walton 7, Miller 6, Hoosier 4, Clifford 3, McDonald 2.
