JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Spartans used a 7-0 run in the fourth quarter to walk away with a come-from-behind win over North Florida at Swisher Gymnasium on Friday afternoon.
The 7-0 run by the Spartans (3-3) was highlighted by a Le'Deja James go-ahead layup with 25 seconds left in the game. NSU was down 54-50 with just under four minutes left after a layup by UNF's Adrienne Jackson, but the Ospreys (4-4) did not score another basket for the remainder of the game while the Spartans put together the biggest scoring run of the contest. For the whole fourth quarter, the Spartans outscored the Ospreys 16-7.
Prior to James' go-ahead layup,
Armani Franklin hit two free-throws to tie the game at 54-54. During UNF's nest possession, Franklin came away with a big defensive rebound and was fouled. She hit 1-of-2 of her free-throws to give the Spartans a three-point cushion. With no time-outs, UNF was forced to go the distance of the floor with 3.7 seconds left and were unable to get off a shot.
James led the Spartans in scoring with 18 points, along with three rebounds and three steals.
Chanette Hicks added 15 points, along with three assists and seven steals.
Mikaela Jones finished with six points and led NSU with six rebounds. Franklin and
Blaire Thomas each added five points for the Spartans.
The Ospreys started fast to begin the game, hitting 3-of-6 of their three-pointers and building a 15-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. James scored the first seven points for NSU, out of the 12 points they scored in the quarter.
In the second quarter, NSU cut UNF's lead down to 22-20 after a layup by Jones with 2:48 in the half. An 8-5 run by the Ospreys in the final two and half minutes maintained a five-point, 30-25 lead at halftime.
The Spartans started quickly in the second half with four points off turnovers in the opening minute, coming off two straight James' fast break layups following steals. The Ospreys once again answered with a 14-4 run to make the score 44-33, their largest lead of the game. The Spartans then came back with an 8-3 run of their own, down 47-41 heading into the fourth quarter.
The shooting percentage for both teams was very similar, with NSU shooting 37.5% (21-56) and UNF shooting 38.2% (21-55). The Ospreys had a +21 rebounding margin, with 46 rebounds compared to NSU's 24. The difference in this game were the 23 turnovers for the Ospreys, coming off 16 steals by the Spartans. While UNF had more second chance points than NSU (13-5), the Spartans were able to cash in on more fast break points (19-6) and points off turnovers (24-6). The Spartans were also more aggressive getting to the free-throw line, converting on 12-of-17 (70.6%) free-throws compared to UNF's 3-of-4 (75%).
The Spartans cap off the JU Thanksgiving Classic with Jacksonville University tomorrow at 2 p.m. The Spartans will return home with a matchup against Longwood in Echols Hall at 6 p.m. on Dec. 5.
