Jan. 21, 2001
CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Junior guard Natalie Powers (Owensboro, Ky./Apollo HS) hit the game-tying three-pointer with 12 seconds left in regulation and scored six of her game-high 24 points in overtime as Western Kentucky pulled out an 82-75 non-conference victory over Miami (Fla.) at the Knight Sports Complex.
Powers also corralled a career-high 12 rebounds to pick up her second career double-double. Senior All-America forward ShaRae Mansfield (Louisville, Ky./Manual HS) added 18 points and a season-high 16 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season. In fact, all five starters scored in double figures for the Lady Toppers, who recorded a season-best 53 rebounds en route to their 10th win in the last 12 games.
The victory marks the second time this season WKU has rallied from a double-digit deficit to come out on top. On Dec. 10, the Lady Toppers wiped out a 16-point Denver lead to beat the Pioneers, 64-63, at E.A. Diddle Arena.
Western (12-5) played the Hurricanes evenly through the opening minutes of the game, as the two teams combined for four ties and three lead changes in the first 10 minutes of action, taking a 14-13 lead on a jumper by Aja Brown (Bronx, N.Y./Manhattan Center HS) with 9:48 left in the first half. Miami retook the lead moments later on a layup by Dona Nando and the hosts would not trail for the remainder of the period.
The Hurricanes (9-7) threw the first haymaker of the contest late in the first half, going on a 13-0 run to take a 32-18 lead with 2:51 remaining. WKU cut the lead to 10 points on a pair of free throws by Powers with six seconds to go, but UM quickly regained the momentum when Camilla Osth hit a 35-footer to beat the halftime horn, giving the Hurricanes a 40-27 lead at the intermission. The Lady Toppers were hampered by 16 first-half turnovers and they shot 34.5 percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes.
WKU came out strong to start the second half, going on a 14-0 run over the first 5:51 to take a 41-40 lead. But, in a game of giant momentum swings, Miami caught the next wave, going on a 19-7 surge to regain an 11-point lead (59-48) with 7:54 to play. The Lady Toppers had another run in them, and it would be critical, as Western slowly caught up to the Hurricanes with a 14-3 charge over the final seven minutes. Mansfield hit one of two free throws with 29 seconds left, getting the Lady Toppers within three, and following a missed UM free throw, Powers spotted up in the left corner and drilled her game-tying triple with :12 left.
Miami took a two-point lead just over a minute into overtime, but that would be the last time the Hurricanes would have the lead in the contest. Sophomore guard Kristina Covington (Elizabethtown, Ky./Elizabethtown HS) buried her fourth three-pointer of the game from the right wing with 3:25 left in the extra session, sparking a 7-0 WKU run that would give the visitors the upper hand. UM got as close as two points three times in closing minutes, but the Lady Toppers canned 7-of-8 free throws in the last 28 seconds to seal their second overtime victory of the season.
Western Kentucky returns to Sun Belt Conference action Thursday at 7 p.m. (CST) when it takes on Arkansas State at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro, Ark.
-- WKU --
