GREENWOOD – In a battle of nationally-ranked teams, No. 15 USC Aiken built an 18-point lead with 15 minutes left, survived a remarkable Lander rally, and beat the 17th ranked Lady Bearcats 65-62 Wednesday night at Horne Arena.

The Lady Pacers ended a pair of Lander winning streaks. The Lady Bearcats were unbeaten in the Peach Belt Conference and had an overall winning streak of 11 games.

Aiken, which closed the first half with a 14-0 run, improved to 18-3 overall and 11-2 in the PBC.

Lander fell to 17-4, 12-1.

Kayla Harris led USC Aiken with a double-double, scoring 21 points and grabbing 13 rebounds including 10 defensive boards. She helped the Pacers to a huge 39-24 edge on the boards. Harris also scored the go-ahead basket with 3:47 left and made crucial free throws down the stretch.

Hannah DeGraffinreed added 14 points for the Pacers, Lindsay Sundberg scored 12 points, Daniela Tarailo added 10 points, and Brittany Hill led them with seven assists.

Brittni Johnson and Jasmine Judge led Lander's comeback from a 17-point halftime deficit. Johnson scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half while Judge had all 15 of her points after halftime, making five of six from behind the arc in the second half after being 0-for-5 in the first half.

Ciara Lyons scored 16 points for the Lady Bearcats, Mukia Myrick led the team with six assists, and Kaylyn Small paced Lander with five rebounds.

Lander hit 23 of 54 shots from the floor (43 percent), but only eight of 18 free throws (44 percent), and eight of 22 from behind the arc (36 percent) after being 0-for-9 in the first half.

Aiken made 25 of 45 shots (56 percent), 12 of 17 free throws (71 percent), and three of six from 3-point range (50 percent).

After trailing by as many as 18 points (41-23) with 15 minutes left, the Lady Bearcats were still down 52-38 with nine minutes to go when they went on a 16-2 run fueled by Judge's 3-point shooting.

Judge's 3 and a fast-break layup by Lyons pulled Lander within single digits at 52-45 at the eight-minute mark.

After DeGraffinreed's jumper pushed the Pacer lead back to nine, Judge hit back-to-back 3s to close the Lady Bearcats within a single possession at 54-51 with 6:14 left.

Lander forced Aiken into a shot-clock violation on the ensuing possession, then Judge hit her fifth 3 out of her last six attempts to tie it at 54, with 5:10 to go. That capped a 16-2 run.

After the Lady Bearcats missed a golden opportunity to take the lead by going 0-for-3 from the line in two possessions, Harris scored in the paint to put the Pacers back on top at the 3:47 mark. DeGraffinreed's two free throws with 3:09 to go gave Aiken a 58-54 lead.

Johnson's bank shot pulled the Lady Bearcats within 58-56 with 2:56 to go, but Aiken pushed its lead back to five, 62-57, with two minutes left on DeGraffinreed's basket in the paint and Sundberg's put-back.

After missed shots by both teams, a Lander turnover, and Aiken's miss of the front end of a one-and-one, a minute-and-a-half ran off the clock before Lyons made a free throw to pull the Lady Bearcats within 62-58 with 27 seconds left.

But Harris made two crucial free throws to give the Lady Pacers some breathing room at 64-58 with 24 seconds to go.

Lyons made one of two free throws with 18 seconds left, and after Aiken missed a free throw, Johnson swished a 3 to pull Lander within 64-62 with seven seconds left.

Harris was fouled immediately and hit her first free throw for a three-point lead but missed the second, leaving Lander with one last chance. But Johnson's desperation 3-point attempt hit high off the backboard to the left of the basket at the buzzer.

The contest was tight at the beginning and when Tarailo converted a three-point play four minutes into the game to give USC Aiken an 8-6 lead, it was already the fifth lead change of the night.

Janyce Ealey's layup gave the Lady Bearcats an 11-10 advantage at the 11:56 mark, the sixth lead change of the game, and she added a free throw on Lander's next possession for a two-point lead.

But Aiken outscored the Lady Bearcats 24-5 the remainder of the half, including the final 14 points, covering the last 11 minutes.

The Pacers had balanced scoring during the run, with Harris scoring seven points, Sundberg five, DeGraffinreed and Porsha Martin four apiece, and Tarailo and Hill two points each. Sundberg's 3-pointer with 31 seconds left in the half capped the rally.

The Pacers made 10 out of 12 shots during the run, while Lander hit only two of 13 shots while committing nine turnovers. The Lady Bearcats were 0-for-9 from the floor over the final six-plus minutes when they were outscored 14-0.

Lander finally hit its first 3-pointer of the night at the 17:01 mark of the second half when Johnson connected from the left corner, pulling the hosts within 36-23.

But Aiken scored the game's next five points, building its largest lead of the game at 18 points, 41-23, on Harris's basket with 15 minutes left.

Lander responded with a 7-2 run, with Johnson's three-point play pulling them within 43-30 with 13:18 left.

After Tarailo scored a fast-break basket for Aiken, Johnson hit a 3 and Lyons made a layup off Ealey's steal to pull the Lady Bearcats within 45-35 with 11:30 to go. The 3 gave Johnson 13 points in the opening eight-plus minutes of the second half.

Aiken responded when Sundberg hit a trey from the top of the key and Hill made a pair of free throws for a 50-35 advantage.

Judge's first 3 of the night, with 9:32 left, closed the gap to 50-38. Harris scored inside for Aiken, but Lander responded with a game-tying 16-2 run.