Firebirds Persevere, 97-90 in Triple Overtime Battle at Roberts Wesleyan

ROCHESTER, NY – The University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team pulled out a thrilling, 97-90 triple-overtime victory to knock off previously undefeated Roberts Wesleyan at the Voller Center Friday night in both teams' East Coast Conference season opener.

The Firebirds (5-3, 1-0 ECC) needed a 10-point comeback in the 4^th quarter to force extended play, a three-pointer at the buzzer by Iman Scott to force a 2^nd overtime, a defensive stand in the last three seconds to force a 3^rd overtime, and finally a 7-0 run to close the game out after an exhausting, 55-minutes of battle.

Senior forward Iman Scott's 34 points was the highest scoring output by a Firebird since Malisa Stephenson scored 48 points vs. NYIT, February 23rd, 1989. She also hauled in a team-high 16 rebounds, and she shot 13-of-28 from the field including 3-of-7 from long range and 7-of-9 at the foul line. Her counterpart, senior guard Tajruba Baldwin-Kollore, helped carry the scoring load as she dropped in 26 points to go with a season-high 10 rebounds and team-high five assists.

Senior forward Tiara Goode scored eight of her 10 points in extended play, including the three-pointer that put UDC ahead to stay in the 3^rd overtime. Senior guard Arielle Ward also knocked down a clutch three-pointer in the 2^nd overtime and scored five of her nine after regulation.

Roberts Wesleyan (8-1, 0-1 ECC) had five scorers in double-figures, including their guards Necedah James and Brooke Fields with 22 and 16 points, respectively. Samantha Courtney had a monster game inside with 15 points and game-highs of 17 rebounds and four blocked shots.

The first quarter saw the two teams trade blows early on, with UDC on top 12-11 and just under three minutes to play. To that point, Baldwin-Kollore and Scott were the Firebirds' only scorers with six apiece, and Roberts Wesleyan closed the quarter on a 9-2 surge. Amber Bryson's basket in the waning seconds made the score 20-14.

Scott remained hot in the 2^nd half, knocking down back-to-back three-pointers, and the Firebirds continued to find success inside with Bryson as she converted three more layups, as the two helped the Firebirds open the 2^nd quarter on a 14-2 surge to take a six-point advantage. A three-pointer at the buzzer by Baldwin-Kollore ensured a five-point advantage, 35-30 as the two teams headed to the locker rooms for halftime.

Lucy Covley (12 points) started and ended a 9-2 surge to begin the 3^rd quarter with three-pointers as the Redhawks seized a 39-37 lead a little over three minutes into the action. Later with the score knotted at 43, RWC outscored UDC 12-4 in the final five minutes and took an eight-point lead heading into the 4^th quarter, 55-47.

A Taylor Bynoe (12 points, 10 rebounds) layup  for the first points of the final quarter extended the lead to 10 – the largest lead of the night by either team. UDC slowly started to chip away at the lead by scoring the game's next five points, but a three-pointer by Necedah brought it back to an eight-point deficit with 6:08 remaining.

The Firebirds continued to claw their way back, converting four layups at 4:46, 2:42, 2:20, and finally, a Jenka Stiasna layup at 1:32 to force a 60-all tie. Following a pair of Bynoe free-throws, Scott buried a jumper with 58 seconds left to force another tie at 62, and neither team would score for the remainder of regulation.

The Redhawks, determined to move to 9-0, out-scored UDC 9-4 in the first 4:30 of overtime and led 71-66 with just 24 seconds remaining. A crucial offensive rebound by Tiara Goode off of a Scott miss led to a trip to the foul line, and Goode sank both to make it a three point game with 14 seconds left. Two missed free-throws by RWC's Brooke Fields gave the Firebirds life, as Scott quickly worked her way into the paint for an uncontested layup at the other end to make it, 71-70 with three seconds left.

UDC let two seconds run off the clock before managing to foul James with only .8 of a second remaining. James made both free-throws to extend the lead to three, and UDC head coach DeWayne Burroughs called a timeout to advance the inbounds pass beyond midcourt. Eight-tenths of a second proved just enough time for Ward to inbound the ball at the top of the key to Scott, who then took the pass in front of the three-point line, took a step back on the release, and buried a three-pointer as time expired to force a 2^nd overtime.

Both teams continued to battle in the 2^nd overtime, as two lead changes and four ties occurred, including the final 84-84 tie which could not be broken. UDC had an opportunity with the ball and eight seconds remaining, but a double-dribble was called on Baldwin-Kollore at the three second mark. The Firebirds defense forced an errant shot by Fields on the ensuing possession, and the game headed into triple overtime.

The Firebirds, who won their last triple overtime game in a 98-95 thriller at NYIT last season, trailed twice in the first 1:06 of tonight's 3^rd overtime session, falling behind, 85-84 and 88-86 at the 3:54 mark. Scott scored the game's next four points to pull UDC in front, 90-88, but Fields answered for Roberts Wesleyan with a jumper at 1:54 to force the game's final tie at 90.

Following failed offensive possessions by both teams, Tiara Goode knocked down a pivotal three-point shot with 35 seconds remaining to put UDC ahead to stay. The Firebirds then converted 4-of-4 at the foul line to ice it while holding the Redhawks scoreless in the final 1:54. Their seven-point margin of victory was their largest lead of the night.

Next up, the Firebirds visit another ECC foe in Daemen College on Sunday, December 13^th at 1 p.m.