BRENHAM, Texas – Despite the hot shooting of San Jacinto College-North, Blinn College women’s basketball was able to hold on to its lead in the fourth quarter for a 72-70 victory Saturday afternoon inside the P.E. Building.
“I thought we played hard but San Jacinto scored easily on us in the first half,” said Jeff Jenkins, Blinn head coach. “We got some stops in the second half but then the offense went stale in the fourth.”
With the win, Blinn was able to improve to 3-2 in Region XIV play and moves its record to 7-5 overall.
The offense for the Buccaneers went a little stale in the fourth quarter but Daikea Milton was able to step up and score eight of her team-high 23 points in the final quarter.
“We didn’t want to lose tonight because last year we lost big to San Jacinto right before Christmas break,” Milton said. “Getting this game before the break is huge for our team.”
Bryanna Taylor was hitting her shots from behind the arc and finished with 13 points while Jade Rochelle chipped in 12 in the victory.
The teams started out pretty even in the first quarter but it was Rochelle setting the pace early for the Buccaneers with seven points. Alexis Oaks and Jasmine Redmon scored back-to-back buckets to give Blinn a 19-14 lead with 2:06 left. San Jacinto made the quarter a little closer at the end but a bucket in the post by Rochelle gave the Buccaneers a 21-18 lead after one.
The 3-point barrage started up for San Jacinto in the second quarter as Blinn did its best to keep its lead. Taylor scored five in the quarter but San Jacinto leveled the score at 39-39 at the half.
The third quarter was the most successful quarter for the Buccaneers but it didn’t start that way. San Jacinto lead 49-44 with 6:06 left until Blinn was able to take advantage of a 12-2 run with seven points coming from Milton to take a 56-51 lead. Rochelle scored in the post to cap the quarter to give the Buccaneers a 60-53 lead heading into the fourth.
Milton started out the fourth with a 3 to give Blinn a 63-53 lead but after that the offense went stale for the Buccaneers. San Jacinto charged back to within one on two different occasions in the final minutes.
With a one-point lead, Blinn was able to get one free throw from Rochelle to take a 72-70 lead. That would be enough to earn a victory as San Jacinto had an open look but missed on a 3-point attempt as the Buccaneers were able to hold on. The offense slowed down for Blinn but Milton was able to help the Buccaneers maintain their lead the entire quarter with eight points.
Blinn will next play in the McLennan Community College Tournament in Waco against Hill College on Monday, Jan. 2 at noon.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 34 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.
