BELTON, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor women's basketball team beat McMurry University 70-65 Thursday evening in overtime play in Belton. The win improved the Cru to 14-10 on the season while the War Hawks fell to 5-18.
 
McMurry led for the first five minutes of play until Bridjai Chaney made a jump shot to tie the contest at 6-6. From there, the Cru went on a 21-3 streak to gain an 18-point lead over the War Hawks. UMHB led by 10 at the half, shooting 44.8 percent in the first two quarters. McMurry cut UMHB's lead to just one point in the third and finally gained an advantage with just under six minutes in regulation. From there, the contest saw three lead changes with UMHB's Kourtney Bevers hitting the game-tying free throw with 14 seconds remaining. McMurry's Taylor Russell made a last-second shot at the buzzer, but the shot was disallowed after review sending the game into extra time. Tori Tucker scored six points in the first three minutes of overtime to put the Cru ahead by three,  before Kourtney Bevers hit another free throw with 29 seconds left to make it a two-possession game. Chaney scored the final points for the Cru, hitting a jump shot with seven seconds left to seal the 70-65 victory.


Chaney and Tucker led the Cru with 14 points each while Jonelle Smith added 10. Tucker also brought down a game-high seven rebounds followed by Smith with six. Meghan Turner recorded a game-high six assists while Chaney and Bevers each blocked two shots. Tucker and Jesslyn Poole each recorded three steals as UMHB forced the War Hawks into 24 turnovers. The Cru shot 46.4 percent in the contest and 56.3 percent from the free throw line.
 
McMurry's Russell led the War Hawks with 21 points and 15 rebounds, followed by Sierra Maykus with 20. The War Hawks out-rebounded the Cru 44-39 in the game, shooting 33.3 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from beyond the arc and 71.4 percent from the free throw line.
 
UMHB closes out the regular season on Saturday, February 20^th in a 1 p.m. game against Hardin-Simmons University.  The Cru will continue action in the 2016 American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament Thursday, February 25^th – Saturday, February 27^th on the campus of the University of Texas at Tyler.