HONOLULU, Hawai'i— Senior guard Mariah Szymanski hit a dramatic, game-winning shot to lift the No. 19 University of Sioux Falls Women's Basketball Team (6-0) to a 79-77 win over Hawai't Pacific (4-1) on Wednesday (Nov. 27) at the Malika Sports Tour Oahu Thanksgiving Classic. The Cougars, which won for the second straight day at the Classic, have opened the season 6-0 and will play Chaminade on Thursday at 4:00 p.m.
After Hawai'i' Pacific's Starr Rivera hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 77-77, USF set up a play for Szymanski who drove to the basket and found space with her shot beating the buzzer as the Cougars picked up a win over a team which received votes in the most recent WBCA poll and was ranked in the D2SIDA Poll at No. 21.
"This was a close game," said 12th-year Head Coach Travis Traphagen. "This was probably the most talented team that we have played to this point, especially offensively. I was definitely worried heading into the game, just because they are averaging 80-plus PPG, and truthfully, we did not play our best [Tuesday], and give Hilo credit."
The Numbers -
Senior Kaely Hummel paved the way for the Cougars with 27 points, including six three-pointers. Senior Mariah Szymanski, who hit the game-winner, ended the day with 15 points, five assists, four rebounds, and two steals. Redshirt junior Anna Goodhope, prior to fouling out late in the game, also finished the game with 15 points, as well as six rebounds. Graduate student Jacey Huinker led the team in rebounds (seven).
The Cougars held the Sharks' leading-scorer, Alysha Marcucci (20.5 PPG), to only nine points, but her teammates Starr Rivera and Abbey Noblett closed the gap with 21 and 19 points, respectively.
As a team, the Cougars shot 43.3 percent (26-for-60) while holding Hawai'i Pacific to 38.7 percent. USF made 10-of-31 shots from three-point range with Hummel knocking six, which tied in career-high (12-31-2016 vs. Augustana) while Szymanski had two. USF trailed 24-22 after one quarter and 47-41 at halftime. The Cougars had a 20-12 advantage in the third quarter for a 61-59 lead at the break. Both teams scored 18 points in the fourth quarter when USF had a 10-point lead before Hawai'i Pacific rallied late to tie the game before Szymanski's game-winner helped USF to the win.
The Cougars' biggest struggle was at the charity stripe, where they went 17-for-30 (56.7 percent), which was noted by Traphagen.
"The one thing I am disappointed about was probably our foul shooting," Traphagen said. "We've been really good to this point, but we were 17-for-30 from the foul line. We had chances to close the game out and we didn't. It's one of those moments, we are up by three," he said.
Game Notes-
After Hawai'i Pacific got the first points of the game with a pair of free throws, Szymanski hit a three-pointer to kickstart a 7-0 run for the Cougars. After Hawai'i Pacific tied the game up at 11-11 at the 4:49 mark of the first quarter, senior Augusta Thramer got a layup to give USF the lead once again. Just under three minutes left in the quarter, Thramer again put the Cougars ahead (15-14), this time with a pair of free throws.
After the free-throws, the Sharks' Marcucci showed some pizazz with a three pointer to put the Sharks ahead by one. The next possession was a rinse-and-repeat of the drive prior, this time sending Szymanski to the line, making both, then another three-pointer from Marcucci to again put the Sharks ahead again.
Hummel got a layup to go with :12 left of the first quarter to tie the game, but a foul with just seconds left gave the Sharks a 24-22 lead heading into the second quarter.
Hawai'i Pacific got the best of the Cougars to start the second half, going on a 7-0 run to take a nine-point, 31-22 lead—the largest lead of the game for the Sharks. The Cougars did answer back with an 8-0 run of their own to make it a one-point Sharks lead with 5:24 left until halftime. Later in the quarter, Hummel hit a three to get within one, followed by a basket by junior Jade Blackburn that turned into a three-point play with the and-one, and more importantly the first lead for the Cougars since the 2:51 mark of the first quarter. The Sharks finished the half on a 7-0 run to take a six-point, 47-41 lead over the Cougars.
The Cougars got off to some hot shooting out of the half, trouncing on the Sharks with a 17-4 run, capped by a Goodhope layup, to take a 58-51 lead. The Sharks fought back to tie the game twice, but the Cougars took a 61-59 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of regulation.
The hot shots kept coming for the Cougars at the start of the fourth quarter, beginning with an 11-3 run to get their largest lead of the game (10-points, 72-62) on a Hummel three at the 5:45 mark. The Sharks shook off the cold streak by tying the game at 72-72 with 2:08 left in the game. Hummel hit a crucial three to put the Cougars up by three with 1:47 left to go.
"This was really a game of ebbs and flows. We would get up 10 and they would come right back. It was kind of a heavyweight battle, and by the end, we got into foul trouble with Goodhope and JC [Huinker]," Traphagen said. "They flipped and went to zone in the last five minutes or so. It really took us out of sorts, but I will be honest; Hummel does what Hummel does. She had a couple big threes and we just had enough to hold on."
After missed opportunities by both teams, Thramer drew a foul to go to the charity stripe with the chance to make it a two possession game, which she did by making one of her shots. 15 seconds left on the clock, and Szymanski got called for a foul that sent the Sharks to the line, which they made both to make it a 76-74 contest. Out of the timeout, the Sharks kept their late game zone going, which nearly worked for them before the ball was inbounded to Hummel, who drew an immediate foul.
At the line, Hummel made the first free-throw to make it a three-point game, but missed the second that was rebounded by the Sharks, whom took a timeout to advance the ball. With plenty of time to set up a shot, the Sharks inbounded the ball and dribbled out the clock a few seconds before the Sharks' Rivera hit a dagger of a three to tie the game with six seconds to go. The basket prompted a Cougar timeout so they could advance the ball and devise a play for a potential-game winner.
Szymanski got the inbound at the wing, quickly drove the ball to the paint, created space between her and her defender to take an off-balance shot. Szymanski's shot went in just before the buzzer sounded to give the Cougars the 79-77 win over a tout Hawai'i Pacific team.
"We put Szymanski on a high fly ball screen, and they handled it fairly well," Traphagen said. "The ball kind of slipped out of her hand, but she got it and put it in with 0.2 [seconds] to go. Could not be more proud. When you are on the road—this was at their home gym—they are undefeated and the 27th team in the rankings. It was a great win for us."
What's Next-
The Cougars will conclude their trip to Hawai'i with a battle with the Chaminade Silverswords (0-3) on Thursday. That game has a tip-off time of 4 p.m. CST.
