By: FVSU Office of Sports Information
In what was the first major upset of the 77th Annual Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament, the number eight seed Lady Tigers of Stillman College defeated the number one seed Lady Wildcats of Fort Valley State University. Taking advantage of a 55.6% first half shooting performance, the Lady Tigers built a 13 point lead with 6:04 remaining. From there, they took a seven point lead into the halftime, 40-33.
In the second half, the Lady Wildcats rallied to take a five point lead at the 11:20 mark. That lead quickly evaporated as the teams traded baskets down the stretch. In the end, the exceptional play of the Lady Tigers in the interior combined with clutch perimeter shooting made the difference in the 72-68 win over the defending conference champions.
Siera Dority was the outside spark for the Lady Tigers. She was eight of 13 in shooting with four, three point baskets. She finished with 23 points and four rebounds. On the inside, Alecia Young proved too difficult for the Lady Wildcats to contain. She had 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jasmon Hazley added 10 points.
Kendra Evans led the Lady Wildcats in scoring with 20 points along with nine rebounds. Takesha Riggs finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.
In addition to not repeating as conference champs, the loss leaves the Lady Wildcats at the mercy of NCAA voting to determine if they will receive a bid for post-season tournament play. The Lady Wildcats will have to wait until Sunday (March 7th) to get the answer to that question.
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