Box Score
MONTICELLO, Ark. – The UAM Cotton Blossoms got their second conference win tonight over Ouachita Baptist, 93-81.
The game went back-and-forth all afternoon, with neither team able to pull away. The Blossoms (6-12, 2-6 GAC) jumped out to an early lead over the opening minutes, earning an 11-point lead just under midway through the period, 18-7. Alex Hart posted 13 of her career-high 33 points in the first half alone, hitting two three’s and a perfect 5-for-5 from the line.
After getting the lead up to 11, the Tigers (11-7, 4-4 GAC) stormed back over the next four minutes to retie the game at 22 after a 15-2 drought by the Blossoms. From there OBU continued to push their advantage, taking a five-point lead into the half 43-48.
Hart got the second half started with a three for the Blossoms, followed by a jumper from Taylor Clark that tied the game at 48, erasing the halftime deficit in under two minutes. The game remained tight for most of the second half, with 12 ties, the last coming at 69 with 7:03 remaining on the clock.
Chelsea Johnson hit a pair of free throws to tie, then take the lead for UAM, 70-69 and the Blossoms would not trail again. 14 of UAM’s final 25 points in the game came at the foul line. Johnson had six and Hart and Candace Virgadamo had four each. As a result the UAM lead continued to climb reaching its zenith at the final buzzer, 93-81.
UAM was paced by Alex Hart’s career-high 33, she added seven assists and four rebounds on the night. Chelsea Johnson posted another strong performance with 22 points in 36 minutes. Candace Virgadamo had 19 and Catherine Puckett added 11 to round out those in double figures.
As a team the Blossoms shot 46-percent on the night, going 26-of-56 from the floor, including 7-of-19 from three (39-percent). They hit 34-of-41 foul shots in the game for 82-percent. The Tigers out-rebounded the Blossoms by one, 41-40.
The Blossoms return to action Thursday night as they begin the second half of the GAC schedule hosting the Arkansas Tech Golden Suns in a 5:30 p.m. matchup at Steelman Field House.
