Jackson, MS – The Millsaps Women's Basketball team earned a thrilling victory over Howard Payne earlier today by a score of 63-62.
 
It was intense, dramatic and at times heart stopping, but the Majors rallied from a four-point halftime deficit to earn their third consecutive win.  Tonight's victory not only improves the Majors to 5-3 on the year, but also continues their home-unbeaten streak.  With 21 seconds left in the game, Majors freshman Braxton Thomas converted on two clutch free throws.  Following Thomas' free throws, Majors junior forward Kim Klunk blocked a potential game winning shot with seven seconds left to seal the thrilling victory.
 
The Majors continued their positive play in the paint by outscoring Howard Payne 30-22.  The Yellow Jackets led in points off turnovers (27-6), second chance points (16-7) and bench points (15-11).  Overall, tonight's intense contest featured multiple lead changes and several different ties throughout the course of the game.  The Majors shot 45 percent from the field (23-51) while the Yellow Jackets shot 29 percent (21-72).
 
In the first half, Millsaps began the game on an 8-0 run.  Howard Payne, however, would answer by finishing the second quarter on a 20-10 to take a 35-31-halftime lead.  The Yellow Jackets led after the first 20 minutes of play despite the Majors excellent first half shooting.  Collectively, Millsaps shot 52 percent from the field in the first half and 100 percent on three pointers.
 
The Yellow Jackets defense, however, was able to force 15 Millsaps turnovers, which led to an early lead.  The Majors would answer by drawing the game even early in the third quarter on layups from Kala-Jewel Freeman, Miah Brooks and Marissa Taylor.  With the score tied 37-37 early in the third, the game turned into a back-and-forth, intense contest.  The second half alone featured 10 ties and 12 different lead changes. 
 
With just over 90 seconds left in the game, the Majors took a two-point lead on a layup from Kala-Jewel Freeman.  The Yellow Jackets then converted on a Danyel Bradley three-pointer to take the lead with a minute left.  From there, Kala-Jewel Freeman grabbed a key rebound and passed to Braxton Thomas.  Thomas was then fouled and sent to the line to shoot two potential game winning free throws.
 
Thomas drained both shots to give the Majors the lead and eventual game winning baskets.  With just 21 seconds left, Kim Klunk checked into the game to help the Majors get one last stop.  Klunk blocked a potential Yellow Jackets game winning shot with seven seconds left to seal the game – and fifth victory of the season for the Majors.
 
Kala-Jewel Freeman nearly earned a double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds.  Miah Brooks and Braxton Thomas also completed a solid game with 13 and 10 points each.  Marissa Taylor and Kasi Matthews also totaled six assists with three apiece while Kala-Jewel Freeman and Kim Klunk both earned two blocks.
 
The Majors will get a few well deserved days off leading up to the holidays next week.  Following the break, the Millsaps Women's Basketball Team will begin their highly anticipated trip to Las Vegas, Nevada to compete in the D3 Hoops Classic.  First game of the tournament is a matchup against Bethel (Minnesota) on Sunday, Dec. 27th at 12 pm.  The trip to Nevada begins a six-game road trip for the Majors, as they will face Bethel and Desales for the D3 Hoops Classic from Dec. 27th-28th.