Thunderbirds Drop Late Comeback to Royals
A second half push by the United Tribes women's basketball team breaks a 25 point deficit and narrowly falls to Lake Region State College, 68-60.
Lake Region State College connected on 6-of-6 shooting from the charity stripe in the final seconds to down United Tribes Technical College, 68-60, on Saturday afternoon at The Devils Lake SportsCenter.
The Royals (3-4) spent the first half of the contest building up a 38-19 advantage, but United Tribes (2-6) came out of the break and assembled an 18-12 third quarter run to cut the deficit down to 50-37. The Thunderbirds continued to apply pressure opening the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run with 6:25 remaining, making the battle, 50-46. Both teams then traded baskets until Thunderbirds sophomore, Gerika Kingbird, connected on a triple and would get a chance to complete a four-point play with 2:06 remaining. That would be the last field goal the Thunderbirds would connect on, giving the Royals a 68-60 win.
Tyleigh Brady led the way for the Thunderbirds netting a season-high 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field, including 4-of-9 from the three-point line. She was just shy of her first double-double of the season with nine rebounds. Gerika Kingbird finished with a season-high 10 points and six rebounds, while Kelanna McClain finished with four points, 10 rebounds, and four assists. Sandie Friday rounded out the top performers with a season-best nine points, seven rebounds, three assists, and four steals.
As a team, UTTC drained 12 free throws on 18 attempts. The Thunderbirds also generated a season-high nine steals with Sandie Friday and Amaya Ramsey contributing four and three, respectively.
UTTC will wrap up its final home game before Thanksgiving break on Sunday afternoon hosting North Dakota State College of Science (8-0) at The James Henry Gymnasium. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m with men to follow at 4:00pm.