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FERRUM, Va. -- Ferrum College, the #2 seed from the East, beat #3 East Averett University this afternoon in the quarterfinals of the 2018 USA South Women's Basketball Tournament, winning 61-59 at Swartz Gym.
RECORDS
Ferrum (17-9)
Averett (18-9)
THE BASICS
Ferrum opened a 13-point lead in the first quarter, only to have the Cougars storm back and close the gap to one point, 35-34, at the break. The Panthers led 56-48 with 5:22 left in the game, but Averett responded with an 11-3 run, tying the game at 59-59 on Alexis Roccia's layup with 38 seconds left. Ferrum turned the ball over with 17 seconds left, but the Cougars returned th favor with 2.7 seconds left. On Ferrum's inbound pass,
Erin March was fouled with 1.3 seconds left and sank a pair of free throws for the win.
KEY STATS
Ferrum:
Zarkia Mattox 23 pts, 8 reb; 5 asst; March 14 pts, 14 reb;
Maggie Self 11 pts
Averett: Brooke Carton 16 pts; Amani Ajayi 13 pts; Ravyn Johnson 16 reb
COACH'S THOUGHTS
"What an exciting win today," said Head Coach
Bryan Harvey. "Our kids played their hearts out and I thought the Averett kids played hard as well. We both battled to the final buzzer and we were able to make one more play than they did. That is what conference tournament basketball is all about. Our fans were great and gave us a lot of energy. Our best player was playing sick and their best player was playing through a foot injury. Really and truly just a great game and a great atmosphere today!"
NEXT GAME
Harvey's squad will be back in action Saturday, Feb. 24, in the USA South Tournament semifinals. The Panthers face league newcomer Berea College, the #1 seed from the West. The other semifinals will pit #1 East Greensboro College against #2 West Piedmont College. Greensboro will host Saturday's semifinals and Sunday's Championship.
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2018 USA South Tournament
Quarterfinals, Feb. 17 (at higher seeds)
Ferrum 61, Averett 50
Greensboro 70, N.C. Wesleyan 54
Berea 78, Covenant 66
Piedmont 66, Maryville 55
Semifinals, Feb. 24 (Greensboro, NC)
Greensboro vs. Piedmont, 1 pm
Ferrum vs. Berea, 3 pm
Championship, Feb. 25 (Greensboro, NC)
Semifinal winners, 2 pm
