LAKELAND, Fla.—Southeastern got a double-double from its all-conference forward and 32 points from its reserves to come away with an 87-63 win over St. Thomas to advance to tomorrow's Sun Conference Women's Basketball Championship game.
Trailing by five with 3:03 left in the first quarter, Southeastern (21-7) ripped off a 24-5 run to take control of the game and hold a 29-15 lead with 4:56 left in the second quarter.
Courtni Demorest came off the bench and connected on three 3-pointers during the run and freshman
Mya Herman added seven points as the hosts went 8-of-12 from the field and held the Bobcats (21-8) to 2-of-14 shooting.
Herman finished with 16 points, four rebounds, and two steals.
Southeastern went to the locker room with a 38-26 lead after going 6-of-8 from beyond the arc in the third quarter.
Kiki Britzmann took over the second half, scoring 13 of her game-high 24 points during the third quarter. During the third, the graduate student from St. Louis was a perfect 4-of-4 at the line and added a 3-pointer. She scored seven more in the fourth and recorded a blocked shot and finished with 11 rebounds.
Britzmann scored six points during an 11-3 run which gave the Fire a 56-34 lead with 3:08 left in the third.
St. Thomas used some full-court defense to try to get back into the game but the deficit was too great.
Anaya Coleman led the reserves with 15 points in 22 minutes, going 6-of-10 from the field and 3-of-4 from 3-point range. She also added five rebounds and three assists. Demorest finished with 12, connecting on four 3-pointers.
The Fire will take on third-seeded Ave Maria in Saturday's championship after a 64-56 win over second-seeded Keiser.
