MONTGOMERY, Ala. –The No. 20 Bethel Lady Wildcats staged a torrid second half comeback at Faulkner Saturday afternoon in Montgomery but came up short falling 75-70 to the Eagles. The loss snapped Bethel's eight game winning streak. It was Faulkner's first ever win over the Lady Wildcats. Bethel leads the series 7-1. The Lady Cats dropped to 14-7 and 6-2 in the SSAC. Faulkner moved to 17-5 and 5-5 in league action.
Bethel trailed 39-26 at the half. Bethel is 0-6 on the year when trailing at halftime. Faulkner led by as many as 22 with two minutes left in the third quarter. Behind the shooting of freshman Millie Bryant the Cats staged a remarkable comeback and moved to within two on a couple of occasions late before Faulkner held on for the win. The freshman from Dresden scored 23 of her game and career high 27 points in the second half.
It was a game of streaks. Bethel took an 8-0 lead to open the game. Faulkner scored 17 unanswered to lead 17-8. Bethel trailed 23-20 before the Eagles ran off another run of 14 straight and Bethel played catch-up the remainder of the game.
Bethel was 20-of-56 from the field at 35 percent. The Cats hit 10 three-pointers. Bryant had six of the 10. Bethel struggled from the foul line hitting 22-of- 33 attempts. Bethel had 20 turnovers.
Faulkner struggled hitting 18-of-60 attempts from the floor but they finished with 12 three pointers. Nine of those came in the first half. Their ability to hit free throws was a key hitting 27-of-34 from the foul line.
The Eagles had a 41-35 rebound advantage. Bethel is 0-4 when they are outrebounded in a game.
Hannah Vest, Kayla Tillman and Inga Armstrong each scored 12 points for the Lady Eagles.
Coach Chris Nelson said, "We have to give credit to Faulkner on a good game and for them bouncing back after a tough one on Thursday night. We got off to a good start and we got away from what we do. We did not keep it simple offensively and got away from the game plan on defense and starting collapsing and leaving shooters open. That's what Faulkner does and they knocked them down. I felt the whole time we would make a run but we dug a big hole and then beat ourselves in crucial moments." He added, "We are proud of the comeback but disappointed in our execution and our mental mistakes. On a positive note Millie was terrific tonight and we are not surprised. She is one of our toughest players and deserves success. This loss hurts us and puts us behind the eight ball but it is not fatal. We have all the pieces but we have to be more stable especially as we approach this time of the year."
Bethel returns home for the first time in almost three weeks hosting Blue Mountain Thursday at Crisp Arena. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m. CST.
