WILLIAMSBURG, Ky. -- Jamie Castle led all scorers with 22 points as she helped the University of Pikeville women's basketball team pull off an improbable comeback at Cumberlands for a 54-47 win on Thursday night.
The Bears trailed by as many as 15 points in the game and were at one point shooting 21 percent from the field late in the action, but still found a way to win by making free throws and forcing 19 turnovers while limiting mistakes of their own. UPIKE also failed to make a 3 in a game for the first time since Dec. 5, 2008.
Aundrea Matchen added 13 points for UPIKE and Elisabeth Latham pulled down nine rebounds and blocked a pair of shots.
Cheyenne Madden led the Patriots with 13 points and Jasmine Rhodes added a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Cumberlands (13-6, 2-4 MSC) scored the first five points of the game on a Simpson 3 and Rhodes jumper, setting the tone for it to lead the entire first quarter. The Bears closed the gap to one twice in the frame, but a 6-0 Patriot run over the final three minutes made it 15-8.
It took just over four minutes for either team to score in the second quarter. Cumberlands' Brandi Williams made a runner in the paint to end the drought at the 5:51 mark, which ended up starting an 8-0 run. Down 23-8, UPIKE finally got on the board with a bucket by Matchen seven minutes into the quarter.
The Patriots wouldn't score again the rest of the half, instead watching their lead shrink to eight at halftime with the Bears scoring the last seven points of the half.
It was the ugliest shooting half of the season for UPIKE (10-11, 2-4 MSC) at just 21.7 percent (5-23), while also getting dominated 20-7 on the glass. However, 11 turnovers and 39 percent shooting by Cumberlands kept it from taking full advantage.
Not a lot changed over the first eight minutes of the third quarter with Cumberlands keeping between an 8-12 point lead. Cumberlands used an Ashley Jackson 3 to make it 35-23 and later went up by 13 points with 2:29 on the clock.
After not gaining any momentum the entire game, the Bears started to get things cooking to end the frame. They finished the final two minutes with a 9-0 run and ended up scoring eight of their 18 points in the quarter from the free-throw line. Heading into the final quarter it was just a four-point game at 37-33.
It was the closest UPIKE has been since trailing 10-8 in the first quarter and it only took a few possessions for it to tie the score at 39 all. Then, with 5:55 on the clock, the Bears took their first lead of the game at 41-40 on a Castle layup.
The last four minutes were like a reward for the Bears after fighting through smothering defense all night long. The lid was off the basket and UPIKE was up by four with three minutes to go. That may not be a huge lead on most nights, but this one was different.
Cumberlands tried to stick around, briefly getting within two, but a Rachel Lee jumper made it a five-point lead with 30 seconds left. All the Patriots could do was send the Bears to the line where they made two of four to seal the win. Cumberlands ended up missing its last four field-goal attempts.
UP NEXT
The Bears head home to face Life (Ga.) at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday in the East Ky. Expo Center.
MILESTONES
Castle passes the 600-point mark for her career as she ends the night with 614 points as a Bear. With three rebounds, Matchen now has 501 in her career while her scoring total is now at 1,173 points, ranking 17th in program history.
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