Putback at the buzzer, foul shot for the win caps huge comeback
Down a key starter due to illness, down 12 at the end of the third period and down to 0.0 on the clock, Scott County’s girls’ basketball team pulled off a stunning comeback to win on an untimed free throw Tuesday night at Paul Laurence Dunbar.
Malea Williams’ putback at the buzzer was ruled good with a foul as the Cardinals completed a run that saw them hold the Bulldogs scoreless for more than six minutes to climb back in it.
When Williams stood alone at the foul line and swished her free throw for the 50-49 win, an emotional Cardinals team jumped to her in celebration.
“It’s a pretty big win,” said Williams. “Especially, when we were down double digits. I was just, like, ‘whoa.’ ... They matched our intensity, and, at times, they were working and grinding harder than we were.”
The Cardinals were without star guard Morgan DeFoor, who averages nearly 20 points per game, due to a stomach bug. Dunbar put Scott County on its heels to start the second half, forcing turnovers and making threes to extend its lead to as many as 15, 44-29, before Kenady Tompkins made a bucket at the end of the third quarter. That began the improbable rally.
Then it was Scott County’s turn to force turnovers and make threes, one each from guards Maleiyah Moore and Emma Price, bracketed by more tough two-point baskets from Tompkins, including a putback of a missed three-pointer that put the Cardinals in front 45-44 with 1:41 to go and capped a 16-0 run.
“That was a good test for us, for sure,” said Tompkins, who finished with 18 points, 12 rebounds and four assists on a night where she shared duties with Williams bringing the ball up the floor. They are two of the biggest players on the team and don’t normally run point. Williams had 13 points and 16 rebounds.
And that’s two wins in a row for a Scott County (10-5) team that has taken as many losses this season as the last two years combined. The comeback shows the Cardinals are not ready to give up their defense of back-to-back 11th Region titles.
“For tonight, it says that we hung in there,” Scott County Coach Scott Helton said. “I told them, I know we were excited for Malea to hit that free throw right there at the end, but at the same time, we need to come back tomorrow and have a good practice, have a good defensive practice ... Hopefully we can build on this. It’s January. This is not the end-all game for us. It was a good win on the road. My thing is: We’ve got to get better.”
This story was originally published January 14, 2020 at 11:21 PM.
