COLUMBIA, Ky. -- The University of Pikeville women's basketball team trimmed a 17-point second-half deficit to three down the stretch, but ultimately couldn't compete with a 31-of-36 showing from the free-throw line as No. 21 Lindsey Wilson won 85-76 on Saturday in Biggers Sports Center.
Khalilah Quigley poured in 28 points, hit three 3-pointers and went 7 of 9 from the line, but the Bears were outrebounded 46-27 and outshot 44.4 to 42.2 percent from the field. Kandice Porter added 17 points and Aundrea Matchen tallied 10 points and a team-best five rebounds.
Bre Elder and Chanel Roberts paced Lindsey Wilson with 19 points each and Kayla Richardson added 16 points seven boards and four assists.
With an aggressive, trapping defense and early outside shooting, Lindsey Wilson (17-5, 5-3 MSC) bolted out to a 16-4 lead. During that span Elder buried three 3-pointers and Roberts controlled the glass as the Bears took some time to get going.
Staring at a 12-point deficit, Quigley took it upon herself to get UPIKE (18-5, 4-4 MSC) back in the game, nailing back-to-back threes to make it 16-12. Erin Swatzel followed that with a layup and Jamie Castle converted a fast-break layup off a miss to tie the score at 18.
Elder hit her third three of the half and, not long after, Quigley poured in her third. It was like that for the next few minutes as the teams traded baskets all the way to a 27-27 tie. Lindsey Wilson got some brief relief at the six-minute mark when Michelle Montgomery and Richardson made two layups to take a four-point lead.
The Blue Raiders' run ended up being a 9-0 spurt before Quigley's free throw made it 36-28 with 3:24 on the clock. Porter and Quigley added jumpers over the next two minutes to cut the deficit to four before Elder answered with a make of her own.
Lindsey Wilson took a 38-32 lead into halftime as Elder led all scorers with 13 points. Quigley joined her in double figures for UPIKE with 12 points. Both players finished the half with three 3-pointers.
The Blue Raiders opened the second half outscoring UPIKE 11-6 to take an 11-point lead, the largest of the game so far. It wasn't until the 12:44 mark when Roberts made two free throws that LWC extended its lead to 13 at 55-42.
It didn't get much better for the Bears for six minutes as LWC got into the bonus and made them pay, pushing the lead out to 17 points. UPIKE had time for one more run and got it in the form of a quick 9-0 run.
Eldridge started it with a three from the corner, then Kayla Day got loose for a layup and Quigley added the punctuation mark with a 3-point play to make it a nine-point game with just under six minutes left. Following a Blue Raider turnover, Matchen made a strong move in the paint to finish off the run.
The press was working for UPIKE in the late stages of the game, forcing Lindsey Wilson to turn the ball over multiple times. When Porter sank two freebies at the 4:55 mark, it was only a four-point game and the Bears got the ball back with a turnover once again.
UPIKE got as close as three at 67-64 but could never get over the hump because Lindsey Wilson was nearly perfect from the free-throw line. When Roberts made two with 12 seconds left, LWC had made 30-of-34 shots, a percentage that made it nearly impossible to pull off the comeback.
The Bears finally ran out of time as Porter's jumper missed and the Blue Raiders finished things off with one more make from the line.
UPIKE is back in action at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, hosting Kentucky Christian at the East Ky. Expo Center.
