STATESBORO, Ga. - Whitney Hood had 22 points and 13 rebounds and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women's basketball team did a lot right Saturday afternoon.
The Lady Mocs had four double-figure scorers but yielded 20 turnovers, missed several layups and went 1-for-7 from the field in overtime as they dropped their second straight Southern Conference game, 77-69 at Georgia Southern.
"I'm proud of the fact that our kids hung in there and battled, especially when we fell down," UTC coach Wes Moore said in a phone interview.
With her team trailing 63-60 late in the second half, UTC's Kylie Lambert hit a 3-pointer with 0.2 second left to force overtime. Hood made two free throws early in the extra period to put the Lady Mocs (3-7, 1-2) up 65-63, but Georgia Southern (3-8, 1-2) outscored them 14-4 the rest of the way.
The Lady Mocs, winners of 11 straight SoCon regular-season titles, are 1-2 in league play for the first time since the 2001-02 season.
"We're not used to being in this position, so I'm definitely concerned [about the team's confidence]," Moore said.
Hood had her second straight double-double, and the 13 rebounds were a career high, but she also had eight turnovers. Kayla Christopher added 14 points for UTC, Lambert scored 11 and Meghan Downes had a career-high 10 off the bench.
Christopher played 44 minutes and Downes, a true freshman, played a career-high 25. The Lady Mocs were short-handed at guard because Alex Black was limited to three minutes with a foot injury, Moore said.
Georgia Southern's MiMi DuBose came into the game with an average of 7.8 points per game. She hit five first-half 3s and finished with 19 points.
The Lady Mocs will be back on the road Tuesday at Kennesaw State.