Box Score Kaila Anthony and Megan Worry lead the Wolf Pack over the Wildcats to move on to tomorrow's SSAC title game at 4 p.m.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Sealed with a 22-11 fourth quarter, the Loyola University New Orleans women's basketball team took down the three-seed Bethel University today in the semifinals of the 2018 Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) Women's Basketball Tournament 76-59 in the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl.
"Coming into this kind of situation where you have very little prep time, I really thought our team bought in and paid attention to details," said head coach Kellie Kennedy. "We defended so many of their sets well and really contested so many of those threes that they usually shoot."
The first quarter remained close throughout with Bethel (20-10, 11-4) striking first for two before Di'Mond Jackson muscled her way into the paint for a layup. The Wildcats would score four quick answered points before Zoie Miller hit two free throws and a bucket for Loyola (24-5, 13-2) to draw the game at six-all.
With the Pack up 10-9 later in the quarter, Bethel sunk a three pointer to go up 12-10, before Jackson hit two free throws to even the score at 12. That would be the final tie of the game however, as Kaila Anthony blocked a shot on one end of the floor, before knocking down her first three of the day to make it 15-12. After an inside score from the Wildcats, Anthony connected on yet another from deep as the quarter came to an end, with the Wolf Pack leading 18-14.
Loyola's offense continued to click early in the second quarter, with Kamille Cooper sinking a jumper from the free throw line before Jackson ran coast-to-coast, scoring on a layup. The Wildcats would respond with a three pointer before the Pack would fight right back, as Anthony hit her third three of the game before Megan Worry sunk one from the top of the arc to make it 28-20.
"We like to run, we like to get out and go, our team is so good at that and we're athletic," said Kennedy. "I feel like we can score in different ways, we can get to the rim or shoot the three so I feel like we're hard to defend. Up-tempo is our style, it's what we like to do, and I loved our level of intensity and sense of urgency for 40 minutes. It was great."
Worry would march down and hit another three from the left wing moments later after a score from the Wildcats, before a score and ensuing free throw from Bethel brought the score to 31-25 with three minutes left in the half.
As the final seconds ran off the clock in the second quarter, Breyah Richardson would steal the ball away from the Wildcats and sink a last-second shot just inside the three-point line, bringing the score to 38-30 at the break.
After Bethal made a jumper to bring it within four, Worry drove to the rim, sinking a layup after being fouled in the process, and draining the ensuing free throw. The Wildcats would respond with another score to keep it a close game, before Anthony made another shot from deep. As the third quarter came to an end Anthony hit her fifth three-pointer to set the score at 54-48 heading into the final quarter.
Bethel would open the fourth with a three, and eventual free throw on a later possession to bring it within two, 54-52. The Wolf Pack then turned the tables, going on a 22-7 run to close out the game, begun by two free throws from Worry, and a layup by Miller to make it 58-52. With 6:24 remaining in the game, Miller was sent to the line, converting both before a stepback jumper by Worry put Loyola up nine.
"Going into the game I knew that everybody had to come in focused and ready to play," said Miller. "This isn't a team we could take lightly, so we made it known that everyone had to do their job today, bring their best game, and do the little things right so we could win."
Jackson would sink a shot from deep, just her fifth three-pointer on the year, before An'Jolique Woodson was sent to the line, hitting both shots to put the Pack up 12. With just under three minutes left in the game, Anthony grabbed the defensive rebound and ran it down the court, driving and finding Worry across the paint for the layup to make it 71-57.
The Pack would hold on to their lead in the closing minutes of the game, winning 76-59 and advancing to the SSAC Tournament Championship Game tomorrow at 4 p.m.
"It's great [to reach the conference final], it's a goal of mine being a senior," said Miller. "We're just going to come together and try to pull this one out."
The Wolf Pack will face the winner of the semifinal game between the one seed Martin Methodist, and the four seed Faulkner.
Worry led the Wolf Pack in scoring today with 19, shooting 3-4 from three-point range while adding eight rebounds. Anthony added 18 off the bench for Loyola, connecting on a career-best five three-point shots, while Jackson scored 17 to go with six rebounds and three assists. Jackson's 141 assists this season now rank as the fifth-most in a single year in program history.
For the Wildcats, Jasmine Whittemore led the team in scoring with 15, while Briana Fields grabbed eight rebounds.
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