Albany, GA- Junior guard Ieshia Young scored 14 of her career-high 20 points in the second half to lead the Albany State Lady Rams to a 68-62 overtime victory over the LeMoyne-Owen Lady Magicians. With the win, ASU improves to 5-8 overall and 4-2 in the SIAC. LOC, the SIAC West Division's top team, falls to 8-4, 4-1.
Albany State trailed for most of the first half. In the low-scoring stanza, LeMoyne-Owen was able to take advantage of some Lady Ram turnovers and fast-break baskets. ASU fell behind by 11, 30-19, with 1:33 left in the first half. When halftime arrived, the Lady Rams had cut their deficit to 30-25.
In the second half, the two teams exchanged the lead on several occasions and were tied multiple times. Young's clutch mid-range shooting kept the Lady Rams in contention. With 38 seconds left, Kayla Green's jumper gave ASU a 56-54 advantage. LOC's Tenesha Wright answered with two free throws to tie game at 56 with 10 seconds remaining in regulation. The Lady Rams could not get off a shot in the final seconds, and the two teams headed to overtime.
In the extra session, Kayla Green scored again to give Albany State a 58-56 lead. A little over a minute late, LeMoyne-Owen recaptured the lead at 59-58. Kayla Green continued to be the Lady Rams' sparkplug, giving ASU the lead for good with another basket for a 60-59 edge with 2:26 left in the game.
Kayla Green scored a career-high 13 points and pulled down five rebounds, while her sister Keidra added another 11 points. Mecca Frost recorded 10 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Artisha Holston led the team in rebounds with a career-high 19 to go along with seven points, four steals and three assists.
Albany State returns to action on Saturday, January 17th when they host SIAC foe Miles College at the ASU HPER Gymnasium. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m.
