SoCon Tournament Central
Game 9: No. 2 Samford 68, No. 3 Chattanooga 66 (OT)
Box Score
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - In the second semifinal final matchup, the second seed Samford Bulldogs needed extra time and timely shooting from senior Emily London to knock off Chattanooga, the three seed, in front of Lady Mocs' home crowd at the McKenzie Arena, 68-66.
Samford will face No. 1 seed Appalachian State tomorrow in the Southern Conference Women's Basketball Championship at 4 p.m. on SportSouth.
All-conference selection London overcame a slow start to account for a team-leading 21 points, including a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. London also added seven rebounds, five assists and four steals for the Bulldogs. Teammate Savannah Hill also contributed with 20 points and nine rebounds.
Chattanooga started the game by making only four of their first 25 attempts, including 2 of 13 from behind the arc and trailed 23-19 in the closing minutes of the half. But with a 9-2 run in the final 1:20 of the game due to a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range, the Lady Mocs went into the locker room with a 28-25 advantage.
The Lady Mocs built the second half lead up to as many as nine points and led 59-52 with under three minutes remaining. However, a London three-pointer with 2:58 remaining sparked a 7-0 Bulldogs run to end regulation. London, the nation's best free throw shooter, hit two shots from the charity line with under a minute to go and send the game into overtime tied at 59.
Samford continued its hot shooting to begin the extra period by scoring the first seven points. Chattanooga responded by putting together a 7-2 run of its own and had the chance to win or send the game into another extra period, but Hannah Dawson blocked Bailey Dewart's attempt to seal the win for the Bulldogs.
For the Lady Mocs, Kylie Lambert recorded a double-double with 17 points and 14 boards and Whitney Hood added another 16 points.
Samford, the fourth best free throw shooting team in the nation, shot an impressive 81.8 percent (18-for-22) compared to Chattanooga's 68.4 percent (13-for-19).
Chattanooga will wait to hear its postseason fate as it closes out the season with a 17-14 overall record.