'Magic in the air:' UNFs Lyric Swann hits back-to-back 3-pointers to lift Ospreys past JU

If the University of North Florida women's basketball team turns a corner this season, they likely will view what happened Saturday as one of the key games.

Junior guard Lyric Swann connected on 3-point shots 28 seconds part to erase Jacksonville University's final lead of the game and the Osprey went on to beat the Dolphins 74-70 on Saturday at UNF Arena, just two days after they were routed 74-51 by JU at Swisher Gym.

UNF (6-13, 3-6) broke a four-game losing streak for the fifth time in the last seven meetings. JU (9-10, 3-6) has lost four of its last five.

The Ospreys shot 47.3 percent for the game, their third-best mark of the season and the best in ASUN games, and hit on a season-high 52.0 percent from the 3-point line. In the loss to JU on Thursday, the UNF made only 33.3 percent from the floor and 21.7 from the 3-point line.

Graduate senior forward Elysa Wesolek had a career-high 21 points off the bench (hitting four of seven from beyond the arc, Swann had 16 points (four of six on 3-point attempts) and freshman guard Maddie Millar, a Bishop Kenny graduate, had 14 points and made four of seven 3-pointers.

Sophomore guard Kaila Rougier added eight points, 11 rebounds and six assists.

"When we're flowing, the magic is in the air," Wesolek said. "One person's hitting and it just bounces off from one to the other."

North Florida used a 14-2 run in the first quarter, with Millar connecting on two 3-pointers, and led 20-9 late in the period and 41-27 at the half. It was the most points UNF had scored in the first half in ASUN games this season.

But the magic disappeared in the third quarter. UNF made only four of 11 shots and Dolphins senior point guard Seraphine Bastin (18 points, nine rebounds, five assists) scored eight points during a 19-2 run as JU stormed back to lead 46-43 with 2:26 left in the quarter and 52-49 entering the final period.

"It was a team effort," said Bastin. "Everybody played their part."

And when the Dolphins made up 19 points in one period?

"I thought, 'we're going to take care of business,'" she said.

That set the stage for a marvelous fourth quarter in which the two teams combined to shoot and made only three turnovers in the last 10 minutes.

"That was pretty good entertainment," said JU coach Darnell Haney.

The game was tied three times and the lead changed hands three times in the fourth quarter. Bastin's layup with 3:35 left gave the Dolphins a 64-60 lead but Rougier hit a 3-pointer and Sarah Taub sliced in for a layup to restore UNF at the top, 65-64.

JU took its final lead of the game when Shynia Jackson (22 points, 14 rebounds) hit a nifty reverse layup in traffic at 2:48 left. It was then that Swann drilled her two 3-pointers, from the top of the key, and Millar and Jaelyn Swann combined to make three of four free throws in the final 25 seconds to keep the Opsreys on top.

"It was more like in the flow of the game," Swann said of her two clutch shots. "I knew we were down and I wanted to make an impact on the game."

UNF coach Darrick Gibbs said it wasn't much of a mystery.

"A big-time player coming down and making shots we needed to make," he said. "Great win for us. I loved our fight."

Jacksonville coach Darnell Haney said there was a miscommunication on the defense and players didn't switch to Swann.

"We weren't aware," he said. "We lost focus and we can't lose focus, especially in the fourth quarter like that."

The Dolphins also didn't hit from the perimeter like they did two nights before, with UNF doing a better job at not giving up 3-point attempts on JU's catch-and-shoot tactics.

Deshari Graham (14 points) and Jalisa Dunlap combined for nine of 14 from beyond the arc in JU's victory on Thursday. On Saturday they combined to make three of 10.

But JU went inside more often, outscoring UNF 46-14 in the paint and 19-8 after getting offensive rebounds. The Dolphins had a 20-9 edge on the offensive glass.

In the end the two teams have the same ASUN record and both are on the bubble for the top-10 in the ASUN to qualify for the conference tournament.

Both teams have four of their next six games at home.

"There's a sense of urgency ... there's been a sense of urgency," Haney said. "But it can't be a sense of anxiety."

Gibbs simply hopes his team has picked up some momentum

"Really, really proud of this group of how we battled and competed," Gibbs said. "Especially considering how things went a couple of days ago."

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Lyric Swann's late 3-pointers the difference as UNF tops JU 74-70