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Shelby Miller recorded 26 points, including two free throws to force overtime, as Maryville had three players score at least 20 points in an 89-82 thriller over Illinois Springfield Thursday at Moloney Arena. The Saints scored the final nine points in the extra session to win their second straight nail biter.
Trailing 72-70 with 2.6 seconds left in regulation, Miller calmly swished two straight free throws to force overtime. In OT, the Prairie Stars scored the first hoop but
Abby Duethman answered with a layup. At the 3:34 mark, Duethman hit one free throw before UIS retook the lead on a 3-pointer by Bailey Beale. Duethman answered with a trey to give the Saints a 78-77 advantage. The Prairie Stars hit another 3-pointer, but
Kate Childs scored on a drive to forge an 80-80 tie, the 13th of the game. Megan Bergerud scored on a layup to put UIS on top 82-80 with 1:35.
However, the Saints responded by scoring the last nine points of the game. Childs drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to hand Maryville an 86-82 margin with 52 seconds left. The Saints defense forced a UIS miss, and Miller sank two charity tosses with 27 second ticks remaining for an 88-82. The Prairie Stars missed again, and Miller converted one final free throw for the final seven-point margin.
On three occasions in the second half, UIS built a seven-point lead, the last occurring at 55-48 with just over 11 minutes left. The Saints tied the game with seven straight points but the Prairie Stars surged back to a 60-55 lead with 9:41 to play.
Rita Flynn scored a bucket, hit two free throws and a Miller driving layup put the Saints up 61-60 with exactly eight minutes remaining. Neither team led by more than three points until the end of regulation.
Miller finished with a career-high 26 points, eight assists, five rebounds and three steals. She hit 7-of-15 shots from the field and 11-of-12 from the free-throw line. Childs also recorded a career high with 24 points, and Duethman recorded her eighth double-double of the year with 20 points and 11 rebounds. For UIS (9-15, 4-12 GLVC), Elizabeth Kelly finished with 27 points and 14 rebounds, and Megan Bergerud added 18 points and 13 rebounds.
The Saints improve to 14-10 overall, 10-6 in the GLVC. Maryville returns to action Saturday, when it heads to Quincy for a 1 p.m. game.
