Lady Bearcats go to 15-2
Things could never quite get comfortable for the Rust College Lady Bearcats Saturday when they hosted Wilberforce University (Pa.).
But in the end, their resiliency won out. Rust led most of the way, fell behind in the fourth quarter, yet escaped with a 6661 victory over the Lady Bulldogs. “We showed our grit there in the fourth,” said coach Eric Jackson, whose team improved to 15-2 on the season.
“When we get in those situations, we have a standard way we should figure it out. We were able to go on a run and bounce back because of the way we attack those situations.”
Jasmine Coleman gave the Lady Bearcats their first lead of the afternoon, 3-2, on a long-range shot from the corner with 8:40 left in the opening quarter.
They were up 13-12 at the end of the first.
The lead moved to six when Katie Blackmon scored on back-to-back put-backs in the first four minutes of the second period.
Shay Johnson’s free throw pushed the margin to eight at the 1:12 mark of the second.
Rust was on top 34-29 at halftime. Coleman opened the third with a long three from the corner, and teammate Bionka Massie closed the quarter with a three. The Lady Bearcats took a 51-44 lead to the final 10 minutes. Wilberforce didn’t go away. With 6:40 to go in the contest, Rust fell behind 59-55.
Coleman got the lead back on a couple of free throws with 6:06 left, and the home squad never trailed again.
Niya McGuire hit a key bucket with less than two minutes left, and Johnson nailed two free throws with six seconds left to seal the victory. “We played sluggish at
times,” Coach Jackson said. “We had a couple of starters just coming back from COVID, and we’re still dealing with some injuries, too.
“Bench players are playing starter minutes, and new people are having to contribute.
We’re trying to figure it all out, and it was definitely good to get the win.” Coleman blistered the nets for a game-high 24 points, with 16 of those coming in the second half. Blackmon was next with 16.
Rust College men
The Bearcats, in the second game on Saturday, dropped a high-scoring affair, 95-91 to Wilberforce.
The game was tied at 44 at halftime.
The top scorer for Rust was Ronald Strothers with 22. He hit six three-point shots. Others scoring in double figures were Malik Anderson with 17, Jordan Watkins with 14 and Omar Gardner with 11.
The Bearcats’ record dropped to 8-9 on the season.
Rust College teams will visit Fisk University on Thursday, Jan. 20, and play at Tougaloo College Thursday, Jan. 27. The next home games are Saturday, Jan. 29, versus Philander Smith College.