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Working overtime

Simpson’s pair of buzzer beaters not enough, Marshall falls to Saints in 3OT

Photo by Jake Mcneill Marshall guard Bri Simpson (23) drives past a St. Peter defender in the second overtime period of the Tigers’ 78-75 triple-overtime home loss to the Saints Friday night.

MARSHALL — Bri Simpson’s buzzer-beaters at the end of regulation and double overtime weren’t enough to keep the Marshall girls basketball team’s six-game win streak alive in the Tigers’ 78-75 triple-overtime loss to St. Peter Friday night.

With the Tigers trailing by 2 points at the end of regulation, Marshall had 10 seconds to get a shot off after calling a timeout. The Saints defense prevented any easy looks, and just when it seemed like time was going to run out, Simpson drove through the lane and knocked down a contested floater to tie the game at 56-56 and force overtime.

The Tigers got a serious sense of deja vu at the end of the second overtime period. Trailing by 3 points, they yet again couldn’t find an open look. Finally, Simpson hoisted up a deep fadeaway 3-pointer at the buzzer and it found the bottom of the net, sending the crowd into a frenzy.

“That was a tough shot,” Marshall head coach Dan Westby said. “For her to knock that down, that’s a big shot for us. I mean, both teams battled so hard, it was really a fun high school basketball game to watch.”

Simpson finished the game with 23 points.

Taleigha Bigler came up big in the first overtime period. She scored 5 of the Tigers’ 7 points, all from the charity stripe, and finished the game as Marshall’s second-leading scorer with 21 points.

Marshall found itself on the opposite end of the excitement as the clock hit triple-zeroes at the end of the first overtime period. The Tigers took a 3-point lead with five seconds left. Rather than going for the intentional foul, they elected to play defense. The Saints seemed like they wouldn’t be able to get in range before the buzzer, so they threw up a shot from well behind the top of the key, but the high-arcing shot also went in to send the game to a third overtime.

Marshall had an opportunity to tie the game trailing by 3 points in the final seconds of the third overtime period. Abby Panka put up a corner 3, but her wrist was hit by a St. Peter defender before she released the ball, leaving it well short of the basket. Yet, the foul went uncalled and St. Peter hung on for the win.

Rhyan Holmgren scored 43 points for the Saints in the game and looked nearly unguardable. When she couldn’t get a bucket, she was able to force her way to the free-throw line.

“We knew coming in that they were going to run a lot of high-screen action and they did a good job of that,” Westby said. “[Holmgren] was able to free herself up and, to her credit, she knocked down some tough shots.”

While the first half started off as a back-and-forth affair, the Tigers faltered down the stretch. After taking a 17-12 lead, the largest of the game through the first eight minutes, the Saints rattled off a 10-0 lead to take control of the game.

Fundamentals had been a strong suit for the Tigers this year, but the team struggled with the basics at points in the matchup against the Saints. Careless turnovers and a failure to close out possessions with defensive rebounds allowed the Saints to extend their lead.

Bigler converted on an and-1 layup to cut the Marshall deficit to 5 points at the break and give the Tigers some momentum. The momentum carried into the second, as Marshall looked rejuvenated and ready to work towards a comeback. They retook the lead within the first three minutes.

“We outscored them 7 to 2 to start the half, I thought that was really important,” Westby said. “We just couldn’t quite get over the hump there. I thought we had a couple of opportunities in overtime and we just couldn’t get it done.”

Marshall (14-5) will cross the South Dakota border to face off against Sioux Falls Roosevelt tonight at 7 p.m.

“When you look at the schedule we’ve had, tough game after tough game, a lot of back-to-backs, you know, Friday, Saturday, Monday, Tuesday. A lot of those sorts of things,” Westby said. “I don’t think [fatigue] should be a factor, but anytime you go to South Dakota, it’s always a challenge.”

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