SAINT LEO, Fla. – Saint Leo women's basketball kept No. 4 Nova Southeastern at bay and led at the end of the first three quarters before eventually falling to the Sharks in double overtime, 85-82, Saturday afternoon at the Marion Bowman Activities Center.
The Basics
Final Score: Nova Southeastern 85, Saint Leo 82
Location: Bowman Center | Saint Leo, Fla.
Records: Saint Leo 1-3, 0-2 SSC | Nova Southeastern 3-1, 2-0 SSC
How It Happened
1Q | A jumper and a trey by Izabell Skoogh helped Saint Leo jump out to a 7-2 lead by the 7:46 mark. Nova Southeastern rallied to tie the game at the 3:28 mark, eventually taking the lead, 13-10, on a three-pointer by Taylor Buie with 3:03 remaining. Back-to-back layups by Skoogh and Chelsy Springs got the Lions back in front with under two minutes to play, and a Skoogh trey in the waning seconds of the period gave Saint Leo a 17-16 lead. | SLU 17-16 |
2Q | Abby Peterson and Springs each hit two-point buckets for the Lions to open the second period, and Chachi Guzman eventually extending the lead to seven points, 26-19, after a three-pointer at the 5:53 mark. NSU pulled back to within three on layups by Octavia Wilson and Kayla Wright, however Guzman scored on consecutive trips up the floor to put the Lions back in front by seven, 30-23, with 2:39 showing on the clock. The Sharks' Molly Blomer drained a three with 51 seconds remaining, and Saint Leo went into the locker room with a four-point lead. | SLU 32- 28 |
3Q | Nova Southeastern came charging out of the locker room for the third period with a 10-point run, ending with a 38-32 lead for the Sharks with 6:27 to play following a Sarah Kelly layup. Buie and Wright each scored four points for NSU during the run. Back-to-back treys by Guzman and Skoogh abruptly halted the run, and knotted the game at 38-38 with 4:48 to play. The Lions outscored the Sharks, 10-2, over the remainder of the period, including a pair of Guzman three-pointers, giving the Lions a five-point lead at the end of the quarter. |SLU 48-43 |
4Q | The Lions extended their lead to eight points on their first possession of the fourth quarter, when Skoogh connected on a three-pointer. Saint Leo still held an eight-point lead, 55-47, and appeared to have the game in hand with under seven minutes to play. That began to change on the next trip down the floor, when the Sharks' Ida Krogh connected on the first of her two foul shots. A succession of Saint Leo fouls started Nova Southeastern on a 13-0 run lasting over four-and-a-half minutes, ending with the Sharks holding a 59-55 lead. Skoogh ended the Lions' 0-for-6 cold streak from the floor with a three-pointer to cut the margin to 60-58 with 1:49 remaining. The two teams traded layups with just over a minute remaining, and Springs' layup from the left side of the paint with 10 seconds remaining sent the game into overtime. | 62-62 |
1st OT | Nova Southeastern opened the first overtime frame with Alexis Murphy's backdoor cut layup, and a pair of free throws by Wright stretched the Sharks' lead to 66-62. Springs tied things up at 66-66 with two-and-a-half minutes remaining on a pair of layups from the left side, and she connected on the second of two free throws at the 1:45 mark to give Saint Leo a 67-66 lead. The game see-sawed back-and-forth over the next minute, with NSU taking a 71-69 lead on a Buie trey with 46 seconds on the clock. The Sharks extended their lead to 75-71 with approximately 10 seconds showing, but Guzman cut the NSU lead to one point, 75-74 with a three pointer. After two missed free throws by Nova's Buie, Guzman was fouled and went to the line with a chance to give the Lions the lead. Guzman found nothing but net on the first foul shot to tie the game, but the second shot caromed away to force a second overtime. |75-75 |
2nd OT | Nova Southeastern again took an early lead on a layup and then a three-pointer by Buie, but Saint Leo struggled to connect on shots and the Sharks' lead held up. Guzman and Springs each made layups to keep the Lions within striking distance, and a Skoogh three-pointer brought Saint Leo to within two, 84-82, with 1:04 remaining. Guzman was unable to convert on a pair of free throws with 54 seconds on the clock, and the Lions were held to just field goal attempt the rest of the way. Saint Leo had three turnovers and were 3-of-8 from the field during the second overtime. | NSU 85-82 |
Points to Note
- Three Lions finished in double figures, led by Chelsy Springs with 27 points on 12-of-23 shooting, to go with a team-high nine rebounds. Chachi Guzman charted 26 points on 9-of-20 shooting from the field and a 5-of-10 mark from beyond the arc. She also dished out 10 assists, and nearly turned the triple-double with eight rebounds. Izabell Skoogh logged 22 points with six three-pointers. The Lions shot 42.1 percent (32-of-76) from the floor.
- Saint Leo's 11 three-pointers versus Nova Southeastern was a season high, as was the Lions' .407 clip from three-point range.
- Defensively, the Lions held Nova Southeastern to 38.0 percent (30-of-79) shooting from the field.
- The Lions were called for 27 fouls during the game, while Nova Southeastern was whistled for 12 fouls during 50 minutes of basketball.
For the Sharks
- Nova Southeastern had three players in double-figures, led by Taylor Buie with 26 points. Kayla Wright finished with 18, while Monaye Merritt posted the double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
- The Sharks received 51 of their 85 points from the bench, to Saint Leo's four.
Up Next
Saint Leo steps out of Sunshine State Conference play for its next contest on Tuesday, Nov. 24, when it hosts Warner University. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo women's basketball, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
