Not one to take many shots, Alicia Payne was presented a dilemma late in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball game against Davidson on Monday. With the score tied and the shot clock winding down, Payne received the ball around the 3-point line at the elbow and turned and fired.
She knocked it down, and not long after, the chances of the Wildcats stealing a win were knocked down as well.
Payne's 3-pointer with 2:02 remaining broke a 58-all tie, and the Mocs improved to 12-3 and 4-0 in the Southern Conference with a 72-64 win in front of 1,612 fans at McKenzie Arena. It was the female Mocs' 32nd straight home victory and the seventh time they've topped the 70-point plateau this year -- all wins.
Payne had all eight of her points in the final 2:02.
"I really didn't want to take the shot, but the clock was running down and I was wide open, so I knew I had to take it," Payne said. "I took my time, took the shot and made it. When it went in, I was thinking, 'Thank you, Jesus!'
"I was happy it went in and that I could do that for my team. We really had to get tough and come together to get the win, but we wanted to push to the end whatever the outcome was."
Taylor Hall led UTC with 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists, while Tatiana Jackson tallied 10 points. Faith Dupree and Aryanna Gilbert each had nine, with Dupree adding seven rebounds.
UTC had 17 offensive rebounds and held a 40-25 edge over Davidson on the boards, as the Mocs showed an improved effort from their game against Georgia Southern on Saturday.Not one to take many shots, Alicia Payne was presented a dilemma late in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball game against Davidson on Monday.
Read more in Tuesday's Chattanooga Times Free Press.