ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – A frantic second-half comeback fell short Saturday in Great American Conference action at the Duke Wells Center, and Harding lost 95-85 to Henderson State.
The loss dropped Harding to 18-9 overall and 14-8 in conference. The Lady Bisons will be the No. 3 seed in the GAC Tournament next week in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and will play Friday, March 4 at 8 p.m., against Northwestern Oklahoma.
Henderson State won its fifth straight game and improved to 18-10 overall and 13-9 in conference. The Reddies are the No. 4 seed in the tournament.
Harding trailed 51-31 at halftime, but opened the second half in a full-court press that completely changed the course of the game. The Lady Bisons scored 13 points off six Reddie turnovers, hit 7 of 11 shots in the third period and outscored Henderson State 35-19 in the quarter.
Hannah Collins scored 17 points in the quarter, hitting 5 of 6 shots, including all four of her 3-point attempts. The Reddie lead was only 70-66 entering the final quarter.
Harding twice pulled within two points in the fourth quarter, the second time on a
Jordan Elder layup with 7:45 left. Henderson State answered with seven straight points to push its advantage to 80-71.
The Lady Bisons scored the next six points to close to within three, but the Reddies scored the next six. Henderson State made 14 of 16 free throws in the fourth quarter and held off Harding.
Collins led Harding with 24 points, her fifth 20-point game of the season. All of her points came in the second half.
Jacie Evans scored 14 points,
Patricija Peric added 13 points and Elder had 11.
Ashley Farrar and Lani Snowden both had 25 points for the Reddies. They combined for nine of Henderson State's 11 3-pointers.
Harding scored the first four points before Henderson State scored the next 14 points. Henderson State made seven straight shots, including three 3-pointers, and led 21-9 before its next miss. The Reddies shot 50% in the quarter, made four 3s and all five free-throw attempts and led 27-17 after one quarter.
Henderson State shot 53% in the second quarter and connected on five more 3-pointers to extend its lead to 51-31 at halftime.
