Box Score

TULSA, Okla. -- The IUPUI women's basketball team felt like the cat that ate the canary as they left the Mabee Center Saturday afternooon.  Despite taking a brief one-point lead, the Jaguars trailed by nine with 1:59 left on the clock.  However, in a 55-second blitz, IUPUI scored 11 straight points to take the lead and stun Oral Roberts, 62-57.

For the first 38 minutes of the, seemingly everything went wrong for IUPUI (13-12, 8-6 Summit).  Two players, Nicole James and Jernisha Cann, were saddled with four fouls apiece.  The Jaguars were 0-11 when trailing at halftime and just 1-11 when trailing with 3:00 to play.

 After Georgia Jones hit two free throws to put Oral Roberts (11-13, 4-9 Summit) ahead, 55-46, with 1:59 to play, the Jaguars comeback started innocently enough, with Julia Whitted scoring from the left block to cut the Jags' deficit to seven.  While IUPUI failed their press containment and fouled, Amy Pryor missed the front end of a one-and-one to give the Jaguars hope.

On their possession, James missed a layup, but Brykeesha Tate converted the tip while being fouled, finishing the three-point play to bring IUPUI within four points, 55-51, with 1:33 left.  The Jaguars' 2-1-2 facing press forced a turnover on the inbounds, and Cann was fouled, where she sank 1-of-2 free throws.

Whitted came up with a block on the defensive end, her sixth of the game, and Tate raced the length of court, laying the ball in while being fouled by Cristal Turner.  The senior calmly knocked down the free throw to tie the game at 55 with 64 seconds left in the contest.

Again, IUPUI's press wreaked havoc on the Golden Eagles, as Mariana Camargo threw the ball right to Kiara Butler, who took one dribble and laid the ball in, giving the Jaguars their second lead of the game. 

On ORU's trip down the court, Cann came away with her fifth steal of the contest and was subsequently fouled.  The senior hit 1-of-2 free throws to make it a three-point game with 46 ticks left on the clock.  Another Golden Eagle turnover gave the Jaguars the ball back, where Butler nailed both free throws to put IUPUI ahead by two possessions, 60-55, with 33 seconds left.

The Jaguars hit 2-of-4 free throws to complete their 16-2 closing run.

"We'll take the win," head coach Shann Hart said after the game.  "We certainly didn't play our best tonight, but we grabbed the final opportunity we had to win the game and took advantage."

With former IUPUI standout and current San Antonio Spur George Hill in attendance, IUPUI squandered opportunities to grab control of the game throughout, taking the lead just once on a three-pointer from Butler 3:11 into the second half.  However, Oral Roberts went on a 10-0 run as the Jaguars failed to score for over four minutes, building a 41-32 lead with 13:47 to play.

The Golden Eagles stretched their lead to 11 before the Jaguars went on a 9-2 run to close within four; still, ORU withstood the burst to build their advantage back to nine before IUPUI's fateful closing run.

The trouble for IUPUI began in the morning shoot around, when Cann was laid out with a stomach virus, leaving her hunched over a trash can for the hour-long practice.  Brittany Ransom was also injured and unavailable to play, leaving the Jaguars with nine available players.

Still, Cann persevered, and despite 1-for-12 shooting, filled the scoresheet with 7 assists, 4 blocks and 5 steals.

James played her finest game of the season, finishing with 15 points, a career-high 9 rebounds and 4 assists.  Whitted controlled the low block, leading all players with 16 points, 12 boards and 6 blocks.

In the opening 20 minutes, Cann and James both picked up three fouls, putting the Jaguars in a precarious situation entering the second half.  Though the Jaguars were able to stay within one possession of the Golden Eagles for the majority of the first half, they were never able to take the lead.

Butler's three early in the second half was the first time IUPUI lead in a 63:11 stretch.

The Jaguars will attempt to carry their momentum to Shreveport, Louisiana, where they will take on Centenary on Monday.  Tip-off from the Gold Dome is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT (8 p.m. ET), and fans can follow the game on IUPUI Live!