CLARKSVILLE, Arkansas–Conference road weekends can be unforgiving. In yet another low offensive output, the UMHB women’s basketball team dropped its second game of the week on Saturday afternoon, falling to Ozarks, 58-53.
It marks the first time this season that UMHB has fallen in consecutive games, as The Cru drops to 19-4 overall and 11-3 in ASC play. The loss, combined with Hardin-Simmons’ 81-74 win over McMurry, pushed UMHB down to second place in the league standings. Ozarks is now 9-14 overall, and 5-9 in conference play.
Just as in Thursday’s 68-60 defeat at the hands of UT-Dallas, it took a significant amount of time for the Crusaders to find offensive traction, as evidenced by a five-point first quarter. The Eagles led 14-5 through the first 10 minutes, although UMHB remedied the slow start in a 20-point second quarter.
UMHB took a 25-23 lead into the halftime intermission, as the Crusaders closed the second quarter on a 5-0 run behind a 3-pointer from Lauren Baker that tied the score at 23 apiece, and Makayla Ward’s go-ahead layup with 29 seconds to play. But ultimately, that momentum was not sustained.
Ozarks, needing a win to remain in contention for a spot in the six-team ASC Tournament, fought back, outscoring UMHB 17-15 in the third. The tide turned in the fourth in favor of the hosts, who opened the final quarter on a 7-0 scoring run. Heaven Hayden’s 3-pointer with 8:25 left put the Eagles ahead, 47-40.
With 47.9 seconds left in the fourth quarter, UMHB’s Arieona Rosborough drove to the lane and scored on a layup that cut the deficit to a single point, 54-53. But Ozarks countered with a driving layup from Hayden 10.5 seconds later, putting the Eagles back up by three.
Down 56-53 with 35 seconds left, UMHB had three chances at a game-tying three-pointer but were unable to convert. A foul was called on Rosborough as she chased down what would have been a fourth offensive rebound on the possession, and Naomi Smith made a critical free throw on the other end that put the Eagles in front by two possessions with 10 seconds left. UMHB went 0-for-5 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter, as Ozarks sealed its upset of the nationally-ranked Crusaders.
Game Notes
- Saturday’s game marked the final time UMHB and Ozarks will play as conference opponents for the foreseeable future, as Ozarks moves to the SCAC next season. UMHB is now 8-5 against the Eagles in games played in Clarksville.
- Over its last four ASC road games, the Crusaders are just 1-3, with the lone victory coming at LeTourneau, 62-55, on Jan. 27.
- This marks Ozarks’ first win over UMHB since Nov. 29, 2016, when the Eagles won, 77-66, in Clarksville.
- The ASC’s No. 2 free throw shooting team at 74.6 percent, UMHB shot below 50 percent from the line for the first time this season (5-of-12, 41.7 percent).
- Ozarks won the rebounding battle, 46-40, marking just the fifth time this season that UMHB has been outrebounded in a game.
- Arieona Rosborough led UMHB in scoring with 14 points, which is the 14th straight game in which she has scored in double figures while playing at least 20 minutes.
- Jaycie Brisco joined Rosborough as the only other Crusader in double figures, scoring 11 points. It marked Brisco’s fifth double-digit scoring performance of the season.
- Gigi Waddell (11 minutes), Makayla Ward (17 minutes), and Katelen Brooks (23 minutes) each logged new career-highs in minutes played for The Cru.
Up Next
UMHB closes the regular season with a two-game homestand in Belton next week, facing McMurry (15-8, 9-5 ASC) on Thursday followed by Hardin-Simmons (20-3, 12-2 ASC) on Saturday. McMurry is now fourth in the league standings while HSU sits in first place.
