SPARTANBURG, S.C. — USC Upstate's Aijah Palmore hit a jumper in the lane with 23 seconds remaining in the second overtime and the Spartans hung on for a 65-63 victory over the Longwood women's basketball team at the G.B. Hodge Center Saturday.
After the go-ahead bucket, Jasmine Peaks drove the lane and missed a jumper, But Otaifo Esenabhalu grabbed the rebound. Jaci Bolden's layup with 2.4 seconds remaining was then blocked out of bounds. Following a timeout, Frances Ulysse missed a jumper at the buzzer as the Spartans escaped with the win.
"We got the ball out of bounds in front of the basket and we drew up something and got it in," Longwood head coach Erika Lang-Montgomery said, describing the last play. "When you're a player in that situation, maybe not understanding how long 2.8, 2.4 seconds can be. And I think we had an opportunity to catch it and go back up versus trying to tip it in. And so we got a good look. We just didn't score it."
USC Upstate took a quick four-point lead one minute into the second overtime when Gwen Jenkins split a pair of free throws and Cassie Gallagher hit a 3-pointer to make it 61-57 with 3:41 to play.
Amor Harris missed a jumper with 2:17 left, but Esenabhalu grabbed the offensive board and Peaks converted a layup and was fouled. She missed the ensuing free throw that could have tied the game at 61-all and Palmore hit two from the line on the next possession to extend the lead to three.
Down, 63-61, Malea Brown hit a layup with 45 seconds on the clock for the tie, setting the stage for the finish in the Lancers' third overtime game of month of February.
"This has been a tough place to play and I thought we showed a lot of grit and determination tonight," Lang-Montgomery said. "Unfortunately we just had some offensive struggles, woes, whatever you want to call it. I thought we got some really good looks, but give them a lot of credit for their defensive plan. But at the end of the day, we got to find a way."
In a low-scoring game that was knotted, 48-48, at the end of regulation, Upstate (10-18, 5-9 Big South) limited the Lancers to just 28.2 percent shooting and carried a 59-40 rebounding advantage on the day. Longwood committed a season-low eight turnovers.
Gallagher and Aubrie Kierscht led all players with 16 points apiece for the Spartans, while Brown and Harris scored 14 each for Longwood, which fell to 18-9 overall and 9-5 in the league with its third consecutive defeat.
Esenabhalu finished with eight points and a career-high 18 boards, including eight on the offensive glass.
Longwood is back home for its final regular-season appearance at the Joan Perry Brock Center on Wednesday to host Charleston Southern at 7 p.m., on ESPN+.
