CONWAY, S.C. – Old Dominion women's basketball held a nine-point lead with 5:44 to go in the third quarter, but could not hold off Coastal Carolina in the fourth as the Monarchs fell on the road 76-68 at The HTC Center.
"This was a game where you have to tip your hat to Coastal Carolina because they came out and they played with energy and they seemed motivated," said head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones. "Was it senior night or was it the fact that they could get a great statement win to finish out their regular season at home? I don't know. But ODU women's basketball did not rise to the occasion in the manner that I as their coach would expect them to do so."
The loss means ODU (20-11 overall, 12-6 Sun Belt) will be seeded fifth in next week's Sun Belt Conference Championship at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Florida. ODU will meet either Georgia State or South Alabama Wednesday at 3 p.m. in the second round.
Georgia State and South Alabama meet Tuesday in a first-round game. ODU would have to win four games in six days to win the league championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.
An Amari Young jumper gave the Monarchs a 45-36 lead with 5:44 to go in the third quarter. A Deaja Richardson three-pointer then opened up a 10-0 run for the host Chanticleers (14-15, 9-9). A pair of buckets from Young and Taleah Washington put ODU back in front, 49-46, but Coastal made a pair of free throws and added a layup just before the buzzer to take a 50-49 lead into the final 10 minutes.
The Monarchs kept it close early in the fourth, and a Jordan McLaughlin make from the perimeter got ODU to within a point at 60-59 (5:19). After CCU went up 64-59, Young converted 3-of-4 shots at the line before a Makayla Dickens long ball put ODU in front, 65-64 with 2:53 to play. That was the last time the Monarchs led though as Coastal used a 9-2 swing to pull away 73-67 with 22 seconds left. Young got to the line again with 10 seconds on the clock, but the deficit was too large at 73-68 and the Monarchs were unable to catch their opponent.
"We fouled two three-point shooters, we get a technical at a critical moment in the game, and we allow emotions to overcome us," continued Milton-Jones. "So what if the fouls are imbalanced, 35 to 13 in terms of free throw attempts? We still had a chance to win. So what if we turn them over 25 times and us 15? We still had a chance to win. So this game is solely on us and our lack of awareness to manage the game and understand that we have a nine-point lead. We can't just give that away with bonehead plays."
Young led ODU in the loss with 17 points, seven rebounds, one assist, one block and two steals. Dickens made four shots from distance and also finished in double figures with 14 points, adding one board and one assist to her totals. Kaye Clark and Brianna Jackson were next with nine points each, and McLaughlin contributed eight points.
Coastal Carolina outscored ODU, 18-15, in the opening quarter, but the Monarchs won the second, 17-12, to take a 32-30 lead at halftime.
Game Notes
- ODU caused 25 Coastal turnovers, but was only able to turn them into 14 points.
- Free throw shooting proved to be critical on the night. Coastal converted 28-of-35 shots at the line, whereas ODU finished 8-for-13.
- The game featured seven ties and 15 lead changes.
- ODU held the lead for 24:48, compared to 12:24 for CCU.
- With the loss, ODU finishes the regular season with a 7-7 mark on the road.
- Young now has 1,141 career rebounds and needs 26 more to tie Nancy Lieberman for fourth place on the program's all-time leading rebounders list.
Women’s Basketball Drops Road Game at Coastal Carolina, 76-68
