ASHEVILLE, N.C. – It was a hole that in previous games this season, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team likely would not have fought its way out of.
Down 12 at the end of the first quarter in Friday’s Southern Conference tournament semifinal against No. 2 seed Furman, the third-seeded Mocs made it all the way back and then some. They held a two-point lead midway through the final quarter at the U.S. Cellular Center before the Paladins regrouped to pull out a 73-67 win.
The Mocs, who ended their season 14-17, were led by sophomore guard Brooke Burns with 18 points, with Lakelyn Bouldin adding 13. Le’Jzae Davidson led five Furman players in double figures with 18. Tierra Hodges had 14 plus 13 rebounds for the Paladins (19-12), who will face regular-season champion Mercer in Sunday’s tournament final.
“Unfortunately, we came out hot last night and we did not today and they did,” said UTC coach Katie Burrows, whose team led by 13 after one quarter in Thursday’s win over UNC Greensboro. “When you’ve got a first-quarter deficit where they’re shooting 70 percent and we’re shooting 27 percent, that’s a killer. And so to dig out of that hole made it very difficult for us.”
Davidson led Furman’s early onslaught, scoring nine first-period points, including the Paladins’ final seven as they took a 29-17 lead after 10 minutes. Davidson wasn’t finished, though, as she added nine more points in the second quarter.