JACKSON – Freshman Janice Okeke earned her first career double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds and senior Crystal Dickerson added a double-double of her own with 15 points and 10 boards as host Millsaps defeated Hendrix College 81-78 in overtime for its first conference victory in a thriller at the Hangar Dome on Saturday afternoon.
No one team held the lead for very long as both teams either tied, or had the lead for a combined 25 times. Both teams played very aggressively with a combined 37 steals.
Hendrix (3-1, 0-1 SCAC) had control of the ball and momentum thanks to a Christina Byler jumper which gave them a 39-34 lead to end the first half. Samantha Clark continued that trend with layup at the 19:48 mark in the second half to give the Warriors their largest lead of the game at seven points, 41-34.
Millsaps (3-3, 1-0 SCAC) answered right back when LaReina Adams had layup of her own for the Majors make the score 41-36 and cut the lead to five. Both teams were held scoreless the next three minutes until freshman Olivia Coats brought it to 41-38.
Tiffany Whitmore's free throw at the four minute mark gave the Majors a 63-58 lead before Hendrix fought back with buckets of its own, including a long 3-pointer from Byler, to eventually tie the score at 63 all with 4:03 remaining.
It had seemed as if the Majors secured their first conference win with just over a minute left, when Okeke had a vital steal and converted two free throws to make the score 71-69. The feisty Warriors, living up to their mascot name, answered yet again with a layup by Chelsey White that sent the game into overtime at 71-71.
Millsaps was able to get the possession at the start of overtime and converted it into a quick basket, as Dickerson was able to make a strong move for the points and one to make the score 74-71. The Majors continued to build on their lead, until White responded again for the Warriors with a layup and the foul with 52 seconds to make the score 79-78.
With the seconds ticking away for both teams, a foul by Avery Roller with 24 seconds left gave Dickerson two good foul shots and the jubilant Majors the eventual 81-78 victory.
Millsaps will end its 3-game homestand with a non-conference rematch against Piedmont College on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 1 p.m. on www.atwsportscast.com. In the first meeting of the year, the Lions edged the Majors by one point in overtime, 81-80.
