Box Score

FEBRUARY 22, 2012

SIMCOX THREE-POINT PLAY WITH 0:02 LEFT LEFTS LADY MONARCHS TO 55-53 SEMI-FINAL WIN OVER EASTERN, KING'S TO HOST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME SATURDAY

WILKES-BARRE —  Samantha Simcox converted a bucket and foul shot with 0:02 left in the contest and Katlin Michaels drilled five second-half three-pointers as the top-seeded King's College women's basketball team posted a stunning 55-53 comeback over visiting fourth-seed Eastern University in the Freedom Conference semi-finals Wednesday in Scandlon Gymnasium.

With the win King's improved to 22-4 on the year and advances to the Freedom Conference title game for the first time since the 2006-07 season. Eastern ended its year with a 17-9 mark.

With King's holding a 52-51 advantage with just under two minutes remaining, Eastern used a bucket by Bekah Roland to take a 53-52 lead with 1:19 to play.  After the teams traded turnovers, King's assumed possession with 0:23 to play. Marissa Manning missed a short jumper from the wing with 0:06 left and Simcox snared the offensive rebound.

The senior forward somehow managed to get off a shot under the basket in traffic and was fouled before the ball rolled halfway around the rim and through the net for the basket. After a King's timeout, Simcox calmly sank the free throw to complete the traditional three-point play, giving the Lady Monarchs a 55-53 lead. Eastern would attempt  mid-court pass but Michaels intercepted the ball as time ran out with King's pulling out a near miraculous victory.

At the start of the game Eastern came out firing and built a 10-4 lead at the 12:48 mark after a pair of three-pointers from Roland and a jumper by Kaitlyn Dougherty.  King's slowly battled back and took its first lead of the game after a three-pointer from Paige Carlin and one-of-two foul shots by Ashley Davies to give the Lady Monarchs a 21-20 advantage with 6:29 remaining in the first half.  Eastern, however, closed out the half with a 7-0 spurt to take a 27-21 lead at the break.

King's did an admirable job defensively in the first half on Eagle star center Megan Nowak who entered the contest averaging 20 points and nearly 10 rebounds per-game. But the Lady Monarchs had no answer for Roland who was brilliant with 13 points and 12 rebounds in the opening stanza, including a trio of three-pointers.  King's was fortunate to be down just six at the half after shooting only 28.6 (8-28) percent from the field in the opening stanza. Carlin kept King's within reach by scoring 10 of the team's 21 points at the break.

In the second half King's used a 6-3 spurt to cut the Eagle lead to 30-27 with 14:37 on the clock after a Michaels layup and four straight points from Manning. Eastern, however, countered with a 5-0 run thanks to five straight points from Roland to push the lead to 35-27 with 12:26 left in the contest.

Carlin then cashed in on a three pointer to spark a  7-2 King's spurt to cut the lead to 37-34 at the 9:43 mark. But Eastern again responded and five straight points from Dougherty that gave the Eagles a 42-35 advantage 6:55 to go.

From there it was Michaels who rose to the occasion for King's, burying a critical three-pointer with 6:33 left.  After Katie Lincoln hit a short jumper for Eastern to stretch the lead to 44-38, Carlin canned a three-pointer for the Lady Monarchs, trimming the score to 44-41 with 5:50 on the clock. Carlin then followed up with a steal and Michaels drilled another three-pointer to knot the score at 44-44 with 5:32 remaining.

After an Eastern turnover, Manning was fouled and made one-of-two charity tosses to give the Lady Monarchs a 45-44 lead, their first since holding a 21-20 advantage with 6:29 left in the first half. After an Eagle miss, Michaels responded with another three-pointer to pus King's ahead 48-44 with 4:11 to play.

Eastern, however, quickly answered with a three-pointer by Dougherty and one-of-two foul shots from Roland to recapture a 49-48 advantage with 3:18 to go.   But Michaels drained her fifth three-pointer of the second half to put the Lady Monarchs on top 51-49 with 2:42 on the clock.  Eastern, though, refused to go away and used a jumper from Roland to tie the score at 51-51 at the 2:22 mark.  King's was equal to the task and Simcox was fouled inside and made one-of-two free throws to give the Lady Monarchs a 52-51 lead with 1:59 to play.

Riding the back of Roland, the Eagle senior scored yet again with 1:19 to play to give Eastern a 53-52 lead.  King's had an opportunity to take the lead but Davies missed a jumper and Eastern regained possession with 0:45 remaining.  But after an Eastern timeout, Lincoln turned the ball over and King's assumed possession, setting up Simcox's last-second heroics.

Michaels finished the game by scoring each of her 18 in the second half, making all five three-pointers while posting seven rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Carlin also played a huge role for King's, concluding the game with 17 points while shooting 4-of-6 from long range.  Manning contributed with seven points and five boards while Simcox tallied six points and eight rebounds.

Roland put forth a supreme effort in the loss, posting game highs of 24 points and 18 rebounds. Dougherty was the only other Eagle to reach double-figures with 13 points and three assists. Nowak, a candidate for Freedom Conference "Player of the Year" honors, was held to a season-low six points with nine rebounds.

King's will now set its sights on a Freedom Conference championship as the Lady Monarchs host second-seeded Misericordia University Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

The Cougars defeated third-seeded DeSales 62-46 in the other smi-final pairing Wednesday night. The winner of the title game will receive an automatic berth into the NCA Division III National Tournament.