GREENWOOD –
Quadaija Langley scored the go-ahead basket with 44 seconds left as the Lander Bearcats rallied past cold shooting Columbus State 58-57 in Peach Belt Conference action Wednesday night at Horne Arena.
The Cougars made nine of 17 shots in the first quarter. But Lander held Columbus State to just 10 of 50 shooting in the final three periods.
The Bearcats outscored the visitors 19-9 in the third quarter, turning the game around.
Lander improved to 6-10 overall, 3-4 in the Peach Belt with its third consecutive victory. The Bearcats had lost 76-64 at Columbus State on Dec. 15, 2022.
The Cougars fell to 9-6, 3-4.
Langley led Lander with 13 points and four assists. Her game-winner in the final minute was one of only two shots the Bearcats made out of 11 attempts in the last quarter.
Jakiyah Parker scored 12 points for Lander, all on 3-pointers, and grabbed a key offensive rebound in the final seconds.
Cory Santoro added 10 points for the Bearcats while
Tyasia Freeman led the team with eight rebounds.
Emilia Tenbrock posted a double-double for Columbus State with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Amber Abusbeih scored 13 points for the Cougars while Maya Jackson also grabbed 10 boards.
Columbus State made four of its first five shots from the floor including three from behind the arc, building leads of 8-0 and 11-2.
Anne Secrest and Langley hit 3-pointers to pull the Bearcats within 14-10 and they would trail 25-16 after one quarter.
Parker opened the scoring in the second period with a 3-pointer that cut Lander's deficit to 25-19. But Olivia West made two treys and Tenbrock another as the Cougars stretched their advantage to 34-22 with 6:42 left in the half.
Columbus State nailed eight of its first 15 attempts from behind the arc but missed its last four of the first half, giving the Bearcats a chance to close the gap. Parker's third trey and Santoro's baseline floater helped Lander pull within 38-30 at the break.
Langley swished a 3-pointer from the top of the key to open the second half, cutting the Cougar lead to 38-33. Santoro matched Langley from the right wing, bringing the hosts within five again at 41-36.
Secrest found Freeman open under the basket for a layup, pulling the Bearcats within 43-42 with 5:10 left in the third quarter. Langley made a 3-pointer from the right wing to give Lander its first lead of the night, 45-43, with 4:31 to go.
Santoro's driving layup off a Langley steal handed the Bearcats a four-point lead. Columbus State missed 10 consecutive shots before finally scoring.
Langley found
Kayla Sanders open for a reverse layup to help Lander close the third quarter with a 49-47 advantage. The Bearcats outscored the visitors 19-9 in the third as Columbus State shot 0 for 7 from behind the arc.
Jackson's put-back pushed the Cougars back into the lead at 53-51 with 6:08 left and then Tenbrock's 3 extended their lead to five.
Lander missed its first seven shots in the fourth quarter. But Parker knocked down a 3-pointer from the left corner, cutting the Bearcat deficit to 56-54 with 4:39 to go.
Secrest was fouled after grabbing a defensive rebound and made both free throws, tying the game at 56-all with 1:27 left.
Langley gave the Bearcats a 58-56 lead with 44 seconds to go when she drove the baseline and made a layup.
Olonna Rawls made one of two free throws with 33 seconds to go, pulling Columbus State within 58-57.
After Lander missed two free throws, Parker outfought two Cougars for the offensive rebound. But the Bearcats committed a shot clock violation with 10 seconds left.
West missed a 3-point attempt in the final seconds. Abusbeih grabbed the offensive rebound, but her put-back fell short of the rim at the buzzer.
