SPRINGFIELD — Missouri State’s Liza Fruendt hit a last-second 3-pointer to send the game to overtime, but Bradley continued the momentum it gained while overcoming a 12-point deficit Sunday afternoon to earn a 75-73 victory at JQH Arena.
The Lady Bears (8-10, 4-3 Missouri Valley Conference) saw their four-game winning streak snapped after seizing control of the game midway through the third period with a 14-0 run that included six points from Alexa Willard for a 48-36 advantage with 14:51 left in the game.
Bradley (6-12, 2-5) buried four 3-pointers over the next five minutes, and pulled within two points on three occasions before Aubrey Buckley converted a 3-point play with 3:33 remaining for a 63-58 lead on the way to career highs of 19 points and 14 rebounds.
The Braves answered with an 8-0 run to lead 66-63 before Fruendt buried a trey with 3.0 seconds left to force overtime.
The extra period turned into a free throw shooting contest, with the Braves gaining the upper hand after a 3-point play at the 4:17 mark. The Lady Bears missed their first seven field goal attempts, but still only trailed 72-70 after Buckley scored with 15.8 ticks on the clock. Bradley countered with three free throws to lead 75-70 with 5.2 seconds left, finishing 7-for-11 from the line in the extra period and out-scoring the Lady Bears 17-8 from the charity stripe in the game.
Fruendt finished with 15 points for MSU and Willard added 12 to reach double figures for the eighth consecutive game, the longest streak for a Lady Bear freshman since Casey Garrison had a 15-game streak during the 2008-09 season. Audrey Holt added 10 points and four steals, and MSU shot 30-for-75 overall while forcing 21 turnovers. Each team grabbed 40 rebounds.
The loss also ended a remarkable streak of 95 consecutive games and nearly six years in which the Lady Bears won after leading when the game clock passed the 5:00 mark in the final period.
MSU wraps up its first trip through MVC schedule next week with trips to Loyola on Friday and Indiana State on Sunday.
