Tyrone coach Jim Swaney remarked on occasion through the first 15 games of what was becoming an ever-frustrating season that all that really stood between the Lady Eagles and a 12-3 record was about five digits on their shooting percentage.
Simply put, Tyrone had not shot the ball well, so despite the team’s penchant for defense, any close game that came down to making a basket at the end usually went the other way.
That’s why last night’s 60-59 non-conference win on the road against Dubois could ultimately be looked at as a turning point if the Lady Eagles can turn around their season.
With the score tied at 58 with less than 30 seconds remaining, senior Hilary McNelis made a jumper from the foul line for what turned out to be the game-winning basket when Dubois leading scorer Kelsey Wilcox missed the back end of a one-and-one with three seconds to play.
With the win, the Lady Eagles improved to 7-9 and won their first game on the road since December 28 at the Blairsville Christmas Tournament. McNelis led Tyrone with 26 points and 10 rebounds, while Emily McKenna scored 19, including five three-pointers, in her best performance since scoring 19 in a win over Huntingdon January 4.
The Lady Eagles built an eight-point lead by halftime, but were forced to come from behind in the second half thanks to outstanding performances by Wilcox and Kaitlyn Fairman, who combined to score 38 of the Lady Beavers’ 59 points. Wilcox led the way with 22, while Fairman added 16.
But Wilcox, who averages over 17 points per game, couldn’t come through when the game was close late, and Tyrone was able to win despite surrendering its second-highest point total of the season.
Tiffany Bradford had tied it at 56-56 late in the fourth quarter before Wilcox made two foul shots to tie it. That set up the game-winner by McNelis, who was one of six Tyrone players to score.
The Lady Eagles hit seven three-pointers, including one from Bradford and one from sophomore Stefani Bryan.
HOOP NOTES: Dubois fell to 6-10 … Tyrone will travel to Lewistown Friday. The Lady Panthers beat Tyrone 60-44 in December … the Lady Eagles are now 2-3 in games where McNelis scores over 20 points … the loss was Dubois’ second straight to a MAC school, after dropping a game to Bellefonte on Monday.
Tyrone 60 Dubois 59
Tyrone – McKenna 6 2-2 19, Ingle 1 0-0 2, McNelis 11 4-6 26, Hoover 0 0-0 0, Bryan 2 0-0 5, Roth 1 0-0 2, Long 0 0-0 0, Bradford 2 1-1 6. TOTALS 23 7-8 60.
Dubois – Snyder 2 0-0 4, Senior 1 0-0 2, Speicher 2 0-0 4, Wilcox 7 6-8 22, Fareman 7 2-4 16, Cribbs 3 1-2 9, Newcamp 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 23 9-14 59.
Score by Quarters
Tyrone 18 17 11 14 – 60
Dubois 16 11 15 17 – 59.
Three point goals: Tyrone 7 (McKenna 5, Bradford 1, Bryan 1).
Dubois 4 (Wilcox 2, Cribbs 2).
