SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – The No. 7 ranked Marian University Knights escaped with a 64-57 win over the upset-minded Spring Arbor University women's basketball team in its home finale on Wednesday night.
For 40 minutes, the Cougars gave Marian all it could handle, trailing by just three with less than a minute to play. But, the Knights would go 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the closing seconds to seal the game.
Kylie Townsley finished with 19 points while recording six rebounds and three steals. Aimee Konkel chipped in 12 points and three steals off the bench. Lindsey Burnside nearly registered her second double-double of the season after posting 11 points and nine rebounds while adding five blocks.
The two teams traded the lead four times through the first 12 minutes before the Cougars pounced on the visitors with a 17-3 run over the next six minutes, propelling them to a 32-23 halftime lead.
Spring Arbor's defense smothered the high-powered Marian (25-4, 14-3 Crossroads League) offense through the first 20 minutes, limiting the Knights – who entered the matchup as the top scoring team in the Crossroads League – to 37 percent (9-for-24) shooting, including 1-for-8 from behind the arc, while forcing 15 turnovers.
The Cougars continued to add to their lead early in the second stanza as Burnside and Townsley combined for six unanswered points to put SAU on top 38-23.
The Knights, however, were finally able to swing the momentum using an 18-0 run to grab their first lead, 41-38, since the 8:44 mark in the first half. Marian's Kaylee Walters fueled the run with 13 point of her game-high 20 points, including a three-pointer that put the Knights on top.
Spring Arbor fought back to keep within striking distance. With less than three minutes left on the clock, though, Marian threatened to pull away after pushing the margin to double digits, 57-47. The Cougars refused to back down and, following a layup from Jessica Mabry, Konkel buried back-to-back three-pointers to close the gap to two, 57-55, at the 1:46 mark.
After a Marian three, LeAnn Porter made a huge play for the Cougars, coming up with a loose ball and hitting a jumper to keep it a one possession game. The Knights would capitalize on their trips to the charity stripe in the final seconds, though, to clinch the win.
Spring Arbor shot 34 percent (19-for-56) while MU connected on 43 percent (19-for-44) of its attempts. The Cougars held the edge on the glass, out-rebounding the Knights 36-34.
Spring Arbor (7-21, 2-15 Crossroads League) will wrap up the regular season at Mount Vernon Nazarene University (4-22, 1-16 Crossroads League) on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m.
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