EDINBURGH – After watching Edinburgh rally from a 12-point deficit in the final 4½ minutes of regulation, then answer Hauser’s first two scores in overtime, Jets coach Brad Hamilton had seen enough.
So with 1:40 left in overtime of Tuesday’s Mid-Hoosier Conference battle, Hamilton had junior point guard Leslie Sims dribble out most of the remaining time. Then she dribbled into the lane and hit a running 7-footer with 4 seconds left that gave Hauser a 50-48 victory.
“I was thinking that we shouldn’t have been in that place in the first place,” Sims said. “I was pretty confident in my teammates that we could pull it out. We tried to score first because whoever scores first most of the time in overtime has the better chance of winning.”
That was the case for the Jets (7-4, 4-2), who regrouped after giving up the fourth-quarter lead.
“We did a really good job to get the lead up to 12 points, and then we didn’t have that killer instinct,” Hamilton said. “I think they’re tired. Some of those kids have been playing 32 minutes a game, and for three or four games in a row, that’s a lot to ask.”
That was one of the reasons Hamilton had Hauser play for the last shot — but not the main reason.
“The bigger reason I held the ball at the end was the momentum shifting to them,” Hamilton said. “They have the crowd into it, they have the momentum. I don’t want them taking the last shot to win the game.”
After falling behind 39-27 with 4 ½ minutes left in regulation, the Lancers (5-6, 1-1) came to life. Kayli Littiken scored the first three points, and Mariah Weddle added the final seven in a 10-0 run that brought them within two with 1:44 remaining.
Edinburgh still trailed by four until Allie Schooler scored with 10 seconds left to cut the lead to 44-42. After a timeout, Vanessa Hoskins stole the inbounds pass and missed a shot, but Schooler was there for the putback to send it to overtime.
“We picked up the defensive intensity and forced them to make some turnovers, and then we still had patience on offense,” Edinburgh coach Amy Macy said. “We didn’t get flustered, and we just took it one point at a time.”
The Lancers twice answered Jets scores with baskets to tie the game, the second on a basket by Littiken with 1:42 remaining. But Hauser (7-4, 4-2) held the ball for the final shot, and Sims delivered.
“Sims is a good player,” Macy said. “She’s quick, she’s hard to guard and she’s a smart player. We tried to keep it out of her hands and put it in other ones and make them dribble and try to get the turnovers.”
Paige Miller led the Jets with 13 points, while Leslie Sims added 10 and Abbey Ashbrook had nine. Tessa Sims and Taylor Henderson each grabbed six rebounds to lead Hauser to a 31-23 advantage on the boards.
“The kids just took over and made plays at the end,” Hamilton said. “They’re veteran ballplayers, and they knew what they had to do. They did a good job of scoring just enough to win the game. . We didn’t have our A game tonight, but we had enough to get the W.”
Weddle and Schooler each scored 12 points, and Weddle grabbed nine rebounds to lead Edinburgh. The Lancers played without starter Bri Howard, who sprained ankle in practice on Monday, and Emma Westerfeld played only in spurts because of pneumonia.
“I’m proud of our intensity and our hustle,” Macy said. “We were down a couple players, and I thought everybody else stepped up. Our whole bench was in the game, and I thought they all did a good job.”
