NASHVILLE, TENN. -Anderson University women's basketball's rally fell just short as the Trojans drop its exhibition game against Division I Lipscomb, 66-59, Sunday afternoon at Allen Arena.
Facing a 20-point deficit early on in the second quarter, the Trojans slowly chipped away at the Bisons lead, eventually cutting the lead to six on a last second 3-pointer by senior Jasmine Franklin to end the first half which capped off a 14-0 run by the Black and Gold.
Anderson was led by Franklin's career-high 23 points while fellow senior Heather Jankowy tallied 15 points for the Trojans. The Black and Gold also got contributions from sophomore Erika Martin with nine points, senior Nakia Young netted eight points while senior Bailey Sims and freshman Alexy Mollenhauer dropped in two apiece. For the game, Anderson starter's scored 42 of the team's 59 points.
The Bisons, who counted the contest as a regular season game, were paced by senior Alex Banks, posting a career-high 34 points on 14-20 shooting and grabbing 11 rebounds to earn her second career double-double.
Lipscomb tried to pull away early in the third period pushing its lead to 10 at the 7:26 mark. The Trojans remained poised cutting the lead to one, 47-46, on Jankowy's third 3-pointer of the game with 1:03 remaining in the quarter. Loren Cagle's lay-up with one second remaining pushed the Bison lead back to three, 49-46, with one period left to play.
With both teams exchanging baskets over the first few minutes of the fourth frame, Lipscomb was able to build a six point lead with 5:52 to play. Following a short jumper by Martin and a made layup by Young, off of the steal by Jankowy, the Trojans pulled within two with 5:17 remaining. After a layup exchange by the Bisons Banks and Franklin, the Black and Gold were still within two with 4:23 left in the ball game.
Lipscomb could not create separation, going just 2-of-6 from the line over the next 3:30 minutes with the Trojans drawing the contest back to three with 17 seconds to play. However, the Bisons found their rhythm at the line closing out the final 17 seconds by making 4-of-4 from the charity stripe to preserve the seven point victory, 66-59.
Head Coach Jonathon Barbaree's Thoughts:
"I thought we fought hard today and showed some grit. We are three players down right now due to injuries, but that didn't stop us from fighting hard and competing today."
QUICK HITS:
Anderson's Jasmine Franklin scored a career-high 23 points, eclipsing a 22 point effort vs. Lander on November 9, 2013.
Lipscomb's Alex Banks scored 35 points in 34 minutes of play with no other Bison reaching double digits.
The Trojans committed 17 turnovers while recording a season high 11 steals.
UP NEXT: Anderson will travel to Mars Hill on Tuesday to begin its South Atlantic Conference slate. Tip-Off is scheduled for 6 p.m.
