Box Score MONTEVALLO, Ala. — The old cliché "basketball is a game of runs" came to the forefront of Montevallo's 65-56 victory over Lane College Wednesday night.
With 7:18 remaining in the second quarter, Lane College (3-9, 2-3) led 33-18 following a Briana Thompson 3-point basket.
Eighty seconds later, things changed.
Marisa Snodgrass, who finished with 12 points, sank one of her four 3-pointers, before
Aaliyah Rice, who led the Falcons with 14 points, made a layup to cut Montevallo's deficit to 10 with 5:21 remaining before halftime. But UM's run didn't stop as another Snodgrass 3-point basket made it an 8-2 run following a Chasity Moore layup for Lane College. A third Snodgrass 3-pointer combined with a
Jordan Jones jumper made it a four-point game.
Shyan Flack made a layup, before
Nautika Philpot collected a defensive rebound and drove the length of the floor to knock down a free throw-line jumper at the end of the second quarter to cap a 17-2 UM run and tie the game at 35.
"What can you say about Marisa, though," Montevallo head coach Gary van Atta said. "She knocked down four 3's in the first half to spark that run. But it was just a total team effort from us tonight."
Montevallo (11-2, 5-1) took its first lead of the game — since 11-10 at the 5:59 mark of the first quarter — when
Kiya Sain sank one of her four baskets less than two minutes in the third quarter.
Paige Ward, Rice, Flack combined for nine more points to cap the run at 21-0 over the game's last 7:41 and a 26-2 run spanning the final five minutes of the second quarter and first five minutes of the third quarter. By the end, Montevallo turned a 33-18 deficit into a 44-35 lead.
"You could say combinations, you could say timing, but I think everything just started clicking for our girls," van Atta said when asked about the run. "People forget that we are still a very young team; 11 of our 16 kids are either sophomores or freshmen, so we'll go through those spells.
"But finding a way to win after being behind, that makes a big difference."
After playing three games in five days, Montevallo will take a two-day break before returning to action on Saturday, Jan. 11 when the Falcons travel to Memphis, Tenn., to play Christian Brothers at 1 p.m.
