Courtesy of LA Tech Athletic Communications
Florida International stole the ball and made a transition layup to beat Louisiana Tech, 73-71, on Thursday night inside the Thomas Assembly Center.
With the loss, Louisiana Tech dropped to 8-14 overall and 2-5 in Conference USA action. FIU improved to 15-6 and 6-1 in the league.
“Their kids finished the last minute of the game the way you should,” said head coach Brooke Stoehr. “We put ourselves in a position to win the game with a seven-point lead with a minute to go and didn’t defend the sideline inbound. We went over their play in the timeout and had gone over in practice this week. We gave up a three to their best three-point shooter and then proceeded to come out and foul the same three-point shooter the next possession.
“We had 19 turnovers that led to 23 points for them, and the two at the end of the game were backbreakers. We did things well enough offensively to win the game. We got to the free throw line and didn’t take advantage of it, and we’re shooting 77 percent from the free throw line in conference play.”
Robyn Lee opened the game with a quick jumper from the free-throw line to give the Lady Techsters an early lead. FIU would respond and take an 11-9 lead halfway through the quarter. Anja Bukvic and Anna Larr Roberson would propel Tech to a six-point run to regain the lead. The Panthers went on a four-point run on their own to tie the game up before Roberson knocked down two free-throws to give the Techsters a 17-15 lead after one.
Roberson, Bukvic, and Silvia Nativi combined for 17 of the 20 Lady Techsters points in the second. Eight of those came the way of Bukvic and Nativi during an 8-2 run to give Tech a seven-point lead.
Florida International didn’t make a three-pointer in the first quarter but would knock down back-to-back triples to bring it within one. The Panthers would hit one more just as the buzzer sounded to end the half up 39-37.
FIU started the third with a five-point run and ended with a six in a row to take the lead 59-54 heading into the final stanza.
Coming out of the media timeout down 62-61, the Lady Techsters drew up a play to get the ball in Roberson’s hands. After catching the ball on the right block, Roberson hit a turnaround jumper to ignite an 8-0 run to give Tech a seven-point lead, 69-62. FIU would close the game on an 11-2 to take the game.
“We worked on end-of-game situations today more than we have in a long time,” said Stoehr. “We do it often, but we spent extra time this week, and it’s disappointing that we had those lapses. Momentum is huge at the end of quarters, whether it’s for you or against you, and they did a good job of taking the momentum.
“We should know what’s going on. It’s having the grit and the toughness to be in a stance, understand what’s coming, communicate to each other, and be able to finish plays and possessions.”
Nine Lady Techsters scored in the game, with eight having five or more. Roberson and Bukvic were the only Techsters to score in double figures. Roberson finished with 15 points, while Bukvic had 11.
The Panthers finished with five players in double figures, led by Mya Kone, who scored 12 points and seven rebounds.
