The Lee women's basketball team fell to rival Union University, 85-72 on Thursday evening in front of a packed and boisterous Walker Arena crowd.
The Lady Bulldogs jumped out to an early advantage and never looked back in avenging a loss just 12 days ago to the Lady Flames in Jackson.
Lee got a big performance out of freshman standout Abby Bertram.
The point guard had 20 points and was active on the defensive end with three steals. Shelby Brown joined Bertram in double-figures with 12 points to go along with five rebounds.
Union countered with 20 points from Jada Smith. Bria Gaines proved to be a force in the paint as she added 18 points and 11 rebounds. Tiffany Rechis canned three triples and had 15 points while Chelsea Bodiford hit four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points. Fredi Nielsen came off the bench for the Lady Bulldogs and pulled down 11 rebounds.
The Lady Flames pulled to within six points on two separate occasions in the second half but were unable to draw any closer than 69-63 on a foul shot from Bertram with 8:17remaining in the game.
Union used the three ball to sustain the advantage in the second half as they hit 8 of 16 from beyond the arc, six of those coming in the final two quarters. The Bulldogs finished the game at 47.3 percent from the floor.
The Lady Flames ended 6 of 20 from 3-point distance and shot 38.3 percent overall. Lee converted just 20 of 31 foul shots (64.5 percent)
Usually a strong staple of the Lady Flames rebounding proved to be a liability as Union held a 42-30 advantage on the glass. The Lady Flames pulled down just 17 defensive boards. Coming into the night Lee was averaging 31 defensive rebounds per game, good enough for fifth place in all of NCAA D2.
"We didn't compete tonight, anybody who's not bias knows we didn't compete defensively or on the boards. The hungrier team won tonight. They were really prepared and followed their game plan perfectly," said head coach Marty Rowe. "We missed way too many easy shots and we ended up getting what we deserved tonight. I was just very disappointed in our effort. We didn't play with a sense of urgency or purpose and credit Union because they brought the fight to us all night long."
Lee falls to 12-6 overall and are now 7-5 in the GSC. Union gets a much needed win to improve to 10-9 on the year and 5-8 in league play.
"That's a really good Union team and they have a great coach. They've been hammered by injuries for much of the year and that's hurt them but when they are healthy they are as dangerous as any team in this league and they proved that tonight," added Rowe.
The Lady Flames and Union were playing in front of a national audience as the game was broadcasted live on ESPN3.
The Lady Flames will make a quick turnaround as they host Christian Brothers on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. Lee will then travel to Shorter for a Monday night tilt with the Lady Hawks at 6 p.m.
"We've got to regroup and get ready for Saturday because Christian Brothers is another really good team," concluded Rowe.
In the men's game, Union University used a combination of 3-point baskets and made free-throws to gain revenge for a defeat suffered at the hands of the Lee Flames some 10 days ago in Jackson, Tenn.
Tray Boyd and Nick Velasquez teamed to convert eight of the Bulldogs’ 10 triples and Boyd joined with KC Goodwin to nail six charity tosses in the final two minutes in the 69-64 victory over the Flames in front of a jam-packed crowd in Walker Arena on Thursday evening.
The ESPN3 production seemed to bring out the best in the Union squad during the final minutes of play as they recorded a badly needed Gulf South Conference victory. The win gives the Bulldogs a 10-9 overall mark but more importantly a 5-8 record in the tough GSC race. The Flames dropped to 9-9 overall and 5-7 in conference action.
Things don’t get any easier for the Lee club as they will host Christian Brothers on Saturday afternoon in the nightcap of a doubleheader. The women will tip at 2 p.m. and the men are scheduled to follow at 4 p.m. It will be free ice cream afternoon in the arena as Mayfield Dairy Farms will sponsor their annual event.
Not only did the Bulldogs hit key shots down the stretch, the Flames battled foul problems the entire evening. Leading scorer Keevin Tyus played only 23 minutes, while Cody Farley and Ryan Montgomery also spent extra time on the bench after picking up quick fouls in the second half.
The Flames led 30-26 at halftime but were outscored 43-34 by the Bulldogs in the second stanza. “We battled back late in the game, but every time we would pull with one, they would either make a 3-pointer or we would be whistled for a foul,” said coach Bubba Smith after the loss. “Give Union credit, they are a good basketball team with a lot of size.”
Senior Jervon Johnson tried to bring the Flames back with a pair of treys in the final minutes and finished the contest with 19 points. He was 4-of-7 from behind the arc and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line. Tyus fought back late in the game and managed to tally 13 points, while Levi Woods rounded out Lee’s double-figure attack by also recording 13 markers. He was 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and 5-of-5 from the free-throw line.
The Flames finished the evening with 40.1 percent from the field and made 9-of-23 3-pointers. They went to the line 19 times and made 13 (68 percent).
The Bulldogs roared back in the second half by shooting 64 percent from behind the arc and 54 percent from the field. The balanced attack was paced by Boyd’s 19 points. Velasquez posted 14 points while Jarad Scott finished with a double-double, 13 points and 17 rebounds. Goodwin totaled 12 and Charlie Wilson gave the Union club five players in double figures with 10 points.
The Bulldogs won the rebound battle 38-29 and turned the basketball over 13 times. Lee only had six floor mistakes to go along with 11 assists. Rico Overall had four assists and Farley three. The contest was tied four times and there were 11 lead changes.