WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Norfolk State rallied from a 17-point first-half deficit to get within one point in the fourth quarter, but William & Mary held on late to top the Spartans 55-50 on Sunday afternoon at Kaplan Arena.

The Spartans had several chances to tie or take the lead in the final minutes, the last coming with 3.5 seconds left when Camille Downs was fouled on a 3-pointer with NSU trailing by three. Downs missed the first free throw, made the second and missed the last intentionally, but the Tribe got the rebound and benefited from a flagrant foul called on the rebound. W&M hit 3-of-4 from the line in the final two seconds for the final margin.

Trailing by 13 at half, NSU (4-7) turned to its pressure defense and attacking offense to rally in the second half. The Spartans forced 13 second-half Tribe turnovers (25 for the game) and got to the free-throw line 21 times, making 16, to make it a game. Downs was the catalyst, scoring 18 of her team-high 20 points after halftime.

Downs had nine points and NSU forced W&M (5-6) into eight turnovers in the third quarter. The Spartans also made 6 of their 9 shots from the floor in the third quarter, the last coming on a Makoye Diawara layup at the end of the period off a pass from Deja Francis that got the Spartans within 40-37 heading into the fourth.

W&M took a 47-39 lead after a free throw by Bre Bellamy at the 7:25 mark of the fourth quarter before the Spartans made one last push. NSU went on a 7-0 run that featured six points by Downs to cut its deficit to one point, at 47-46, with 2:49 remaining. After forcing another Tribe turnover, NSU had two shots to take the lead at the other end, but missed both.

Sydney Wagner, who scored a game-high 25 points, made a 3-pointer from the right wing with 1:39 left to play to push the Tribe lead to 50-46. But Downs scored on a layup 18 seconds later and Francis stole the ball from the Tribe at the other end. Francis was fouled with 35 seconds left and split the two free throws, bringing NSU within 50-49.

Bellamy hit 1-of-2 from the charity stripe with 27 seconds left. Francis missed at the other end with less than 10 seconds to play, and NSU fouled Tribe guard Riley Casey. Casey made 1-of-2 from the line to push the Tribe lead to 52-49. Downs drew a foul while shooting a contested 3 to set the stage to the wild finish.

In a scrum for the rebound after Downs' second missed free throw, the referees ruled W&M called timeout and assessed an flagrant foul to the Spartans with two seconds left, giving the Tribe two free throws and possession of the ball afterward, all but ending NSU's chances.

W&M started the game quickly, using a big run at both ends of the first quarter to take control. The Tribe scored 10 of the game's first 12 points, nine coming from the duo of Wagner and Dani McTeer. NSU cut its deficit to 13-8 on a layup by Niya Fields, but the Tribe scored the final eight points of the first to take a 21-8 lead.

Both teams clamped down on defense in the second quarter, which saw both teams scored just eight points. NSU did not hit a field goal over the final seven and a half minutes of the period, but the Spartans held W&M without a point over the final 3:50 of the half. Wagner made two free throws with 3:50 left in the half to give the Tribe their biggest lead, at 29-12.

One game after scoring a career-high 22 points against UNCW, Downs hit the 20-point mark again Sunday. She was 6-of-13 from the floor and 8-of-11 from the line. She also led NSU with six rebounds and was credited with three steals.

Williams was NSU's next highest scorer, with seven points. She also blocked four shots. As a team, NSU shot 30 percent from the floor (14-of-46) and missed all 13 of its 3-point tries. The Spartans had a big edge at the foul line, making 22-of-29 (75 percent) while W&M was 10-of-16.

W&M shot 41 percent from the floor. Wagner, who scored a career-high 29 points against NSU last year, shot 8-of-16 from the floor and 7-of-12 from 3-point range on Sunday. Bellamy added 13 points.

The Spartans are off until after the holiday break, when they participate in the Hawk Classic hosted by St. Joe's in Philadelphia, Pa. NSU faces Harvard on Dec. 28, then either North Alabama or St. Joe's on Dec. 29.