Freshman point guard Katie Nelson scored both the first and last two points of the Massachusetts women’s basketball team’s 54-51 victory over Clemson yesterday at the William D. Mullins Center.
Nelson’s final two points came in the form of a pair of free throws with 19 seconds left and essentially clinched UMass’ first win of the season.
The Ellicot City, Md. native grabbed a rebound after a missed three point attempt Clemson sophomore Julie Aderhold. Nelson was promptly fouled by junior Chrissy Floyd and sent to the free throw line in a 1-and-1 situation, her team up 52-51. A pre-shot huddle calmed any nerves Nelson may have been feeling.
“Everybody [in the huddle] was real confident that I could make it, so it helped my confidence,” Nelson said.
UMass (1-3) jumped out to a five-point lead with five minutes left in the first half on a Paige Harris three-pointer, but the Lady Tigers responded with some sharpshooting of their own. Floyd, Aderhold, and senior Krystal Scott each sunk a three in the next three minutes and when Aderhold sunk a layup with just 48 seconds remaining in the half, the Minutewomen fell behind for the first time in seven minutes.
Junior forward Siiri Liivandi fed her fifth first half assist to classmate Jen Butler underneath the basket and, with milliseconds left on the clock, the 6-foot-3-inch center scored her fifth point of the contest.
“Siiri is the one post player who always looks inside for her partner,” O’Brien said.
UMass held the momentum into the second half. Junior forward Amber Sneed scored the first five points of the period and layups by Butler and junior forward Nekole Smith extended the Maroon and White lead to 10 at 41-31.
Clemson stayed in the game behind the continued marksmanship of Scott, who scored eight straight points – giving her squad its last share of the lead for the contest.
The Minutewomen dominated the boards throughout the second half, limiting the Lady Tigers’ second chances. Led by Smith’s four offensive rebounds in the second half alone, the Minutewomen out-rebounded Clemson 20-4 in the final frame.
“That’s unbelievable,” said O’Brien, not trusting the numbers when she first read them.
“We could be one of the best rebounding teams in the country,” Smith said. “Whoever wants it more is going to go get the rebound. I think today we wanted it a little more.”
Smith took another step toward being one hundred percent after dislocating her knee last year. The Ann Arbor, Mich. native looked more comfortable on the court than she had in the previous three contests.
“Tonight is the first time since we started in October that I have seen that bounce in her step,” O’Brien said. “I think it’s the first time where she forgot everything that’s going on physically.”
Scott cut the lead to two with 43 seconds remaining, but the Clemson comeback ended there.
Beating a team that made the NCAA Tournament last year, which has solid players throughout its lineup, was a major confidence builder for the Minutewomen.
“I think [the win is] pretty big,” Smith said. “We needed something to build off of. Getting a win after three losses is big for us. We know what we’re capable of doing. We have to do it everyday. We have to fight everyday.”
The win came after a heartbreaking 65-60 triple overtime loss to Rice Friday. Two last second shots kept UMass alive for 65 minutes of play, but the team was unable to score a single point in the third overtime and racked up its third loss of the season.
Owl Jennifer Rigg put her team up two points with six seconds left in regulation, but Ebony Pegues responded by taking the ball coast-to-coast and sunk a floater in the lane to send the game into its first overtime.
Pegues missed on a similar shot near the end of the second overtime, but Butler was there for the rebound and the put back as time expired, sending the game into its third extra session.
Both teams looked exhausted in the final overtime. The only points scored in the entire five-minute period were five free throws by three separate Owls.
UMass turned the ball over 27 times in the loss. Rice scored 22 points off Maroon and White turnovers.
“We are like a body without a head right now – so many people doing so many different things,” O’Brien said. “You’ve got three people doing one thing and two people not doing it the way they need to – that’s when you get turnover.”
Butler led all scorers with 19 on 8-for-19 shooting. The Brooklyn, N.Y. native pulled down 14 rebounds (eight offensive).
Smith was plagued with foul trouble throughout the contest and played just 12 minutes.
