Manatee Review

From November 21, 2022 post.

Trailing by 10 points to start the the fourth quarter of play, Edward Waters outscored Clinton College 26-12, including an impressive 7-0 run with less just over two minutes remaining to earn a 73-68 victory in their non-conference matchup on Monday afternoon at J. W. Martin Gymnasium.

Edward Waters (4-1) led by as many as seven points midway through the first quarter, before the Golden Bears (3-3) closed out the quarter with a run to take a 21-19 lead. The second quarter was none too kind to the Lady Tigers as Clinton stretched their lead out to double digits in the late stages, ultimately leading 39-27 at the end of the first half.

The start of the third quarter was a near mirror image of the second with Clinton pushing their advantage to as many as 16 points. EWU went on an 8-2 run to close the quarter, chopping the lead back down to single digits at 54-47 at the end of the third. The frantic fourth quarter saw the resilience of Edward Waters. The Lady Tigers trailed by 10 after a three-pointer from Clinton, then went to work from there. A 5-0 run cut the deficit in half at 59-54 with just over 5:00 remaining. A free throw from the Golden Bears pushed the lead back to six, before an Isis Smith layup brought EWU to within four at 60-56 with 5:57 remaining. Another Clinton layup pushed the lead back to six at 62-56 with, then a critical three pointer from Tatum Hayes brought the Lady Tigers within three at 62-59. Two free throws from Clinton added to their advantage at 64-59 with 4:46 remaining. A Jourdan Avery Layup cut the lead back to three at 64-61. Molly Ragle then cut the deficit one at 64-63 with less than three minutes left in regulation, thanks to a layup. Clinton pushed their lead back to three with a layup, but on their ensuing possession, Tatum Hayes hit another huge three pointer, tying the game at 66-66 with 2:21 remaining. Hayes connected once again from three with just over a minute left to give EWU their first lead of the game since the 1:24 mark of the first quarter at 69-66. EWU was able to close the game out with another Hayes jumper with :26 remaining, then two free throws Isis Smith, giving them a resilient five point win on the road.

EWU was outshot by the Golden Bears, 49.1% to 46.9%, but it was the Lady Tigers three point shooting that was critical down the stretch. Edward Waters connected on 40.9% of their shots from three point range, to 35.3 for CC. 

Tatum Hayes led all scorers with her first 30+ point effort of the season, notching 31 points on 11-19 shooting, including going 9-for-15 from three point range. Reserve sophomore guard Jourdan Avery was a major spark plug off of the bench, with 12 points, while Anissa Tuitt finished with nine points and eight points for EWU.

Edward Waters will take Thanksgiving off, before heading to Wilberforce, Ohio to start SIAC play against Central State on Saturday afternoon at 1:00pm. 

Original source can be found here.