PENSACOLA, Fla. - Senior Terren Ward's bucket with 3.6 seconds remaining sent No. 12 seed Georgia Southern women's basketball past No. 13 seed Texas State, 72-70, in the 2024 Sun Belt Conference Tournament first round on Tuesday at the Pensacola Bay Center.
Georgia Southern (15-17) now advances to the quarterfinals, where it will face No. 5 seed ULM at 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Texas State finishes its season at 14-18.
The Eagles shot 60 percent in the first quarter in building a 24-17 lead at the end of the period, then stretched that lead 11 points, 40-29, at the break. That lead would grow to 16 points, 49-33, with 6:19 left in the third quarter.
Texas State cut the deficit to nine points at the end of the third quarter, then eventually came all the way back to tie the game at 68-all on on a three-pointers from Crystal Smith with 1:53 left.
On the next possession, the Eagles' Ja'nya Love-Hill converted a layup after an offensive rebound and an assist from Kayla Thomas with 38.8 seconds left. Texas State tied the game at 70 on a bucket by Morgan Hill with 21.3 seconds remaining, setting up Ward's go-ahead bucket.
Texas State had one last chance to tie or win, but Diamond Stokes stole the inbounds pass to preserve the victory and send the Eagles into the quarterfinals.
Ward finished with a game-high 24 points, while Thomas added 15 points and Love-Hill chipped in 11. Julia Coleman's 18 points led Texas State on the day.
Eagle of the Game
Ward hit 8-of-16 shots from the floor, including going a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc, en route to her 24 points - her 21st game this season with 20+ points. She added six rebounds, a pair of steals and a blocked shot.
Stat of the Game
The win is the second for Georgia Southern all-time in Sun Belt Conference tournament play, with the first coming during the 2021-22 season, an 88-79 win over Georgia State in the first round.
Quotables
Head Coach Anita Howard on advancing past Texas State
"I thought Texas State played one heck of a game. We were up 16 points and we felt like we had the game in hand, but then the veteran team in them and Coach Z, who I have a lot of respect for, they just showed up and challenged us down the stretch. I think our ladies came to Pensacola with one thing in mind. This season hasn't gone like we wanted it to go, I know we are better than our record, I just want these seniors to go out a little bit better. Tonight the team stepped up for those seniors. The team played so we could see another day for these ladies."
Next Up
Georgia Southern meets ULM for the second time this season. The first meeting came back on January 6, with the Eagles taking a 69-66 win on Terren Ward's steal and buzzer-beating three. This will be the first meeting between the two in Sun Belt tournament action.
