Final Four bound
Tammeisha Law, a sophomore forward for the GCSU women’s basketball team, had a lot on the line in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament opening round this past Wednesday night at the Centennial Center.
Law needed a Bobcat victory to advance to the semifinal round of the tourney to stay alive in hopes for a PBC Tournament Championship berth this weekend.
However, Law also yearned for a win because of a chance to see her family on Saturday in Aiken, S.C., something that rarely occurs.
Thankfully for Law and the No.1 seed Bobcats, both of those statements were validated after GCSU’s 60-59 overtime win against No. 4 seed Georgia Southwestern.
Law stepped up the whole game, putting down big shots when the Bobcats needed them most, on a poor team shooting night. She ended the game with a new career high of 16 points, while tallying eight rebounds.
“I’m just glad we won the game,” Law said. “Our defense is what won it.”
That strong defense is what allowed the Bobcats (21-7, 14-4 PBC) to stay in the contest, despite shooting 31.1 percent overall. The Bobcats were able to force the Hurricanes into 22 turnovers.
“This was the first game all year we really communicated well on the defensive end,” Law added. “We did our part defensively and it paid off.”
GCSU was led by the 22 points of junior guard Chimere Jordan, while senior point guard Shandrea Moore chipped in with 15.
The Bobcats were down at halftime, 23-20, only shooting 28 percent from the floor, and just 1-of-7 behind the arc.
GCSU opened the second half dismally, as the Hurricanes powered themselves on a 9-0 spurt to put the game seemingly out of reach with 15:44 to play.
That’s when head coach John Carrick saw a defensive shift in attitude.
“We played great defense all night,” Carrick said. “We had a hard time shooting the ball but we took pride in our defense.”
The Bobcats successfully responded on a 10-0 run of their own, due mainly to the strong defensive effort. Georgia College forced four key turnovers in the next 4:42 to tie the game at 32-32.
“We were able to make some tough shots in key situations, although overall we didn’t shoot the ball well,” Carrick said.
Down the final stretch of the game, the teams traded punches. GCSU led by as many as six points with 7:24 to play, but the Hurricanes were able to battle back and tie things up at 46-46 with 3:44 remaining.
The Bobcats were in a key position to win the game, down 51-50 with 13 seconds to play, but a turnover in the frontcourt and a foul resulted in two free throw attempts by Southwestern’s Brittany Reynolds. Reynolds sank 1-of-2, to put the game at 52-50 in favor of the Hurricanes.
With three ticks remaining on the clock and the Bobcats’ season on the brink, Jordan drove to the basket and was fouled on a layup attempt. Jordan hit both free throws to send the game into overtime at 52-52.
“We love having the ball in Chimere’s hands when the game is on the line and she didn’t disappoint,” Carrick said.
In the five minute overtime, Georgia College quickly went down 54-52 on an uncontested layup by Hurricane guard Nadirah Gardner. The Bobcats would respond swiftly by a Law jumper just outside the paint.
Tied at 54-54, the Bobcats were able to go on a 6-2 dash to put the game out of reach. GCSU hit multiple clutch free throws to prevail.
“We shot well from the line down the stretch,” Carrick said. “That was definitely a positive.”
A last second 3-point attempt by the Hurricanes came to no avail, as the Bobcats closed out as the victors.
Now, Law is able to spend time with her family Saturday and also focus on squaring off against No. 2 seed Francis Marion out of the eastern bracket in the semifinals.
“We have to be patient on offense and keep running the plays well,” Law said. “Francis Marion is a strong team and they are nationally ranked (No. 17).”
The tip is set for Saturday at 3 p.m. at USC Aiken’s Convocation Center.
Posted by Chandler Lee
on Mar 5 2010. Filed under Sports.
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