CLEVELAND, Miss. -- The University of Montevallo Women's Basketball team ended its 2019-2020 regular season with a 97-90 loss at Delta State.  The Falcons secured the #5 seed in the upcoming Gulf South Conference tournament and will play at Alabama-Huntsville on GSC Super Tuesday, March 3 with a 6 pm tipoff.  The winner will advance to the GSC Final Four on Saturday, March 7 at the Pete Hanna Center, on the campus of Samford University.
 
Aaliyah Rice and Kiya Sain led the Falcons with 22 and 17 points respectively, as they close out the regular season with an 18-10 overall record, 12-8 in conference, their best overall record since entering NCAA Division II as a full-fledged member in 1997.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Delta State took a 9-4 lead to the first quarter media timeout, but Montevallo used an 8-3 spurt to take a 12-11 lead with 2:54 to go in the opening period.
• The Falcons opened the second period on a 5-0 run, taking the lead 23-22 with 7:14 left in the first..
• A buzzer beater layup by Montevallo's Kourtnie Smith gave the Falcons a 47-46 advantage going into halftime.
• Aaliyah Rice led Montevallo in first-half scoring with 17.
• The Lady Statesmen opened the second half with a 10-3 run to grab a 55-50 lead with 7:40 remaining in the third period. 
• Montevallo's second buzzer-beater of the game was a three ball at the end of the third quarter that cut the Delta State lead to five, 72-67.
• The Lady Falcons got back-to-back three-pointers to start the fourth and take a 73-72 lead before Delta State tied the game 76-76 with 7:08 to go. 
• Delta State used a 12-2 run to grab a 90-85 lead with 3:08 to go and Montevallo hit a late three to cut the lead to 93-90.
• The Lady Statesmen closed the game at the free throw line, however, to seal the 97-90 win. 
• For Delta State, Nia Johnson and Quantesha Patterson set new career-highs in scoring. Johnson finished with 29, while Patterson scored 33.