SAN ANTONIO – A last second shot by Mack Lankford fell short for the Wildcats as they fell, 50-49 to St. Mary's in non-conference action Tuesday night at Bill Greehey Arena. Lankford had 21 points for ACU in the losing effort.
Cecilee Perez knocked down a jumper with 2:25 left to tie the ballgame at 48-48 and
Kelsey Smith hit one of two from the free throw line to give the Wildcats a one point lead with 1:28 left in the game. However, a turnover and foul by
Renata Marquez put Nicole James at the line who made two free throws to give St. Mary's a one point lead and the victory.
The Wildcats would get one last look after Lankford picked up a steal, but her final shot at the buzzer was no good as ACU dropped their fourth straight to fall to 0-4 on the season. The Rattlers improved to 3-2 picking up the in-region win.
Both teams led by seven in the first half but a nip and tuck second half saw both teams trail by no more than four points. Lankford would pick up a steal racing down court for back-to-back layups giving ACU a 40-38 lead with just over 14 minutes left in the game. She finished with five steals and a game high 21 points.
ACU would go on an 11-2 run over the five minutes turning a four point deficit into a four point lead. A Rattler trey from Nicole James would cut the ACU lead back to just one before the eight minute media break.
Both teams would trade baskets and leads down the stretch as neither team shot very well from the field on the night. ACU would barley clip 40% as the Rattlers shot just over 31% on the night, but was 13 of 18 from the free throw line while the Wildcats were only 11 of 19 at the charity stripe.
Lankford added seven rebounds for the Wildcats while
Cecilee Perez was also in double figures with 10 points.
Mareta Bailey and Kristen Williams each had 14 points for St. Mary's as Bailey added 11 rebounds for a double-double.
ACU will open Lone Star Conference play on Thursday as they host Texas Woman's in LSC Crossover action at Moody Coliseum. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. in Abilene.
