Gorillas fall to Missouri S&T

Down by seven with 1 minute, 35 seconds remaining, the Pittsburg State women’s basketball team battled back to within one on back-to-back 3-pointers from Bailey Waugh and Caitlin Demarest with 49 seconds left.
It was not enough as the Gorillas fell 78-75 to Missouri S&T in the first game of the Missouri Southern Thanksgiving Classic at the Leggett & Platt Center in Joplin, Mo.
PSU (3-2) fouled Missouri S&T twice in the next 18 seconds, but Jazmine Bell made only two of her four charity shots, allowing the Gorillas to stay in the game. Laura Glenn drove in for a layup with seven second remaining to tie the game again, 75-75. Two more Pitt State fouls and three made Missouri S&T free throws sealed the win for the Lady Miners.
Much of the point difference in the game came down to the free throw line. Both teams missed over 10 free throws, but the Lady Miners were sent to the line 35 times, with 22 of their 78 points coming from the charity stripe. Missouri S&T also beat out the Gorillas on the glass with 53 rebounds compared to just 33 for Pitt State. The Gorillas did make 30 shots from the floor on the night, including six threes. They also handled the ball better, committing only 18 turnovers to 27 for the Lady Miners.
Larissa Richards and Brianna Buchanan led the Gorillas with 13 points a piece. Richards finished the night 6-of-7 from the floor in only 13 minutes played. Laura Glenn led the team with six rebounds. Waugh contributed a team-high five steals.
Tamara McCaskill led four Lady Miners in double figures with a game-high 25 points. She also added 10 rebounds to be one of two Missouri S&T players with double-doubles on the night. Katie McElrath contributed 17 points and 13 rebounds. Lauren Dubbert and Jazmine Bell rounded out the players in double figures with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The Gorillas went into the locker room at half time down by only one after a tight first half that saw six ties and 15 lead changes. The largest lead of the half was a five-point lead by Missouri S&T on a Courtney Kemp layup with 6:35 to go in the opening period. The Gorillas put up seven unanswered points, capped by a Whitney Conerly three, to go ahead by two.
As much as the first half was a back and forth game, the second half was a game of streaks. The Lady Miners scored nine unanswered points to lead off the half. Pitt State did not make its first basket of the second half until the 17:44 mark on a layup by Richards. The S&T run would continue and stretch to 13-2, and leave Pitt State down 50-37, before the Gorillas would score again.
DePrice Taylor made a layup with 14:09 left to begin a 11-0 run that brought the Gorillas back within two. Missouri S&T took a six-point lead back again, but the Gorillas did not give up the fight, battling back into the game and earning its first lead of the second half on a Laura Glenn layup with 6:01 to go. The last four minutes of the game saw five ties and three lead changes before it was settled in the last minute.
Pitt State will continue Missouri Southern Thanksgiving Classic play on Saturday at 1 p.m. as they take on Evangel.