Box Score

RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky scored the first 10 points of the second overtime on its way to a 91-86 victory over Tennessee State on Saturday night at McBrayer Arena. Brittany Coles capped the 10-0 run with a three-pointer and a jumper and finished with a career-best 26 points.

Eastern’s Marie Carpenter began the second overtime with a lay-up and then connected on a three-pointer. Coles followed with her trey and a jumper to give the Lady Colonels an 85-75 lead. They would need every bit of it.

The Lady Tigers didn’t concede. TSU rolled off eight straight to close within two, 85-83, with 31 seconds left in the second overtime. EKU missed five straight free throws and turned the ball over twice during the Tennessee State run. Carpenter finally put an end to the visitor run with a pair of free throws at the 29 second mark. Shakeyia Colyer made all four of her free throw attempts in the final 12 seconds to secure the victory.

Free throw shooting plagued both teams throughout the contest. The Lady Colonels made 24-of-44 (55 percent) from what is typically referred to the charity stripe. The Lady Tigers went 8-for-18 (44 percent) from the line.

Carpenter tied her career-high with 25 points. Colyer finished with 13 points, eight assists, four steals and no turnovers in 31 minutes on the court. Alex Jones recorded her 14th career double-double, finishing with 17 points and 15 rebounds.

Eastern Kentucky had 20 assists on its 28 made field goals and only turned the ball over 16 times, compared to 27 for TSU.

The Lady Tigers were led by freshman Tayla Foster and Kim Haynes with 20 points each. Meredith Stafford added 19 points. Foster and Stafford each had nine rebounds.

Tennessee State came out of the locker room at halftime and started the second half with an 11-2 run to build a 12-point advantage, 38-26. Foster’s three-pointer with 16:33 left in the game capped the run.

The Lady Colonels countered with seven unanswered of their own to draw within five. Carpenter’s trey with 15:13 on the clock made it a five-point game, 38-33. After a TSU three-pointer on the other end, Eastern scored seven more unanswered to make it a 14-3 run. Carpenter knocked down a triple from the left corner to cut the deficit to 41-40. After a Lady Tiger lay-up broke up EKU’s second string of seven straight, Carpenter drained another from long range to tie the game, 43-43, with 10:48 left to play.

Tennessee State stretched its lead back to five on Haynes’ fourth three-pointer of the game before the Lady Colonels tied it again. A jumper by Cherie White and a free throw from Colyer knotted the score at 53-53 with 5:08 remaining in the second half.

Coles nailed three-pointers on three straight EKU possessions to give the Lady Colonels their first lead of the game. Her third, from the right wing, made it 62-59 in favor of the home team with 2:42 showing on the clock. A baseline jumper by Coles made it four straight baskets for the sophomore on four straight Eastern possessions and kept her team on top, 64-62, with just over two minutes to play.

Four straight free throws allowed Eastern Kentucky to go up by four, 68-64, with 29 seconds remaining in regulation. However, TSU made a pair of baskets around two missed EKU free throws to tie the game. Stafford’s driving lay-up with 15 seconds left tied the score 68-68. Eastern’s baseline jumper for the win with two seconds on the clock hit the side of the backboard.

A pair of free throws by Coles with 26 seconds to go in the first overtime gave the Lady Colonels a 75-73 lead. Jasmine Brimm tied the score with a driving lay-up with seven seconds left. She was fouled on the play but missed the free throw. Coles missed on a three-point attempt at the buzzer, sending the game into a second overtime.

The two teams combined for 21 three-pointers. TSU went 10-for-23 (44 percent) from deep. Eastern was 11-for-21 (52 percent). Nine of EKU’s three-pointers came in the second half and overtime periods.

The Lady Colonels will return to action on Thursday when they play at Tennessee Tech. Tip-off in Cookeville is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET.