Wildcats dominate final minutes to top Huskies

HOUSTON — ACU trailed by five with 3:20 left, and closed the game on an 11-0 run to beat Houston Baptist Wednesday night, 62-56. Anna McLeod recorded her second straight double-double, the team defense and rebounding was clutch, and the Wildcats (12-5, 5-3 SLC) picked up their second straight win. It was a defensive battle with the Huskies (7-6, 3­-3 SLC) in a matchup of two of the top five teams in the standings. The win keeps ACU perfect all-time (11-0) against HBU.

Turning Point: The last 3:20.

• The game was back-and-forth the entire night, and Houston Baptist led as much as a five in the fourth quarter. HBU held a 56-51 lead, and ACU took over from that moment. Madi Miller hit a pair of free throws to get the ‘Cats within three, and Kamryn Mraz followed it up with her only field goal of the game, a three-pointer, to tie it.
• Alyssa Adams hit free throws and McLeod followed it up with a backdoor layup on the baseline on a brilliant pass from Miller. The lead went to 60-56, and Mraz sealed it with two free throws.
• The defense shut out Houston Baptist in the final 3:20, and the team is showing a clutch factor late in games. ACU outscored Lamar and Houston Baptist in overtime and in the final three minutes a grand total of 26-4.

Key Plays

• 1Q | ACU opened the game on a 6-0 run, with Adams scoring four of those points to open the game. It was the largest lead of the first half.
• 1Q | ACU led 11-6, but HBU closed the quarter on a 5-2 run and it was a two-point game after 10 minutes.
• 2Q | McLeod made a concerted effort to get to the rim, and hit consecutive layups to put ACU up 22-21.
• 2Q 0:00 | Paige Emborsky hit ACU’s only three-pointer of the half, and it came at the buzzer. The created it with very little space, and went between the legs and drained a step-back three from 22 feet to give the Wildcats a 25-24 halftime lead.
• 3Q 8:38 | McLeod hit ACU’s first three-pointer of the second half, setting the tone that the shooting would be different; the ‘Cats hit four triples in the second half.
• 3Q 7:25 | McLeod’s second triple put ACU up 32-25, and Adams followed it with a layup to give ACU its largest lead, 34-25.
• 3Q 2:43 | HBU completed a 12-2 run to take a 37-36 lead, and trailing 41-36, Miller hit two big free throws to get it to 41-38.
• 4Q 6:20 | HBU had just hit a three-pointer to take the lead, 47-46, and then the freshman Katie Horyna hit the biggest shot of her young career. The Liberal, Kan. native got open in the corner and drained a clutch three to put ACU in front, 49-47.
• 4Q 2:26 | Miller was fouled, and hit two free throws to pull ACU within three, 56-53.
• 4Q 1:31 | Mraz scored her first points of the night in spectacular fashion, burying a three off a screen at the top of the key, to it up, 56-56.
• 4Q 1:06 | The defense got huge rebounds all night, beginning with Alyssa Adams, who was fouled and hit a pair of free throws to give ACU a lead they wouldn’t surrender.
• 4Q 0:41 | Horyna then made a huge play defensively, getting a long rebound off a miss and got it up the court. ACU then executed a brilliant backdoor from Miller to McLeod to go up four points, 60-56.
• 4Q 0:19 | The game was sealed when Mraz got a rebound off a prayer three-pointer, and hit the dagger free throws to win it, 62-56.

Stat Pack

• Head coach Julie Goodenough said that rebounding would be a big key. She was absolutely right as ACU outrebounded a tall, lengthy HBU team, 42-35. ACU had 33 defensive rebounds to HBU’s 10 offensive on that side of the floor.
• Neither team shot particularly well, combining for 35% from the field, and even though ACU only made five three-pointers, went 19-22 at the free throw line.
• McLeod led the way with her second-consecutive double-double, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds. She added three assists in 39 minutes of play.
• Adams finished with 17 points, including 7-of-8 at the line, and snagged eight rebounds. She also drew four fouls in the game, and was big in helping foul out HBU’s Marilyn Nzoiwu, the Southland’s leading shot-blocker.
• Miller scored six points including four at the line, but snagged a career-high eight rebounds, something she has now ton three times in her career. Miller also dished out five assists.
• Three freshman, Horyna, Taylor Morgan, and Alice Stevenson, had big moments in the game. Morgan hit a key layup, Horyna had the three-pointer and big rebound, andStevenson recorded three boards and a big steal to go along with four points.
• Mraz’s five points were in the biggest moments of the game.

Up Next
ACU will head home for the first time in a week to take on the Islanders of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. AMCC had their Wednesday game against SFA cancelled due to COVID-19, but is scheduled to play in Abilene on Saturday, Feb. 13 at 5:30 p.m. The game can be seen on ESPN+ and heard on 102.7 The Bear.