WSOU

Recap: Maly Delivers Knockout Punch to Beat Pirates 75-74 in OT

Date: March 5, 2023

By: Spencer Gonzales

Lauren Park-Lane against the Bluejays.

Seton Hall Athletics

On Saturday night, the No. 6 Seton Hall Pirates (18-14, 10-10 CONF) suffered a heartbreaking 75-74 overtime defeat at the hands of the Creighton Bluejays (22-7, 15-5 CONF) on a buzzer-beating layup from Morgan Maly.

These two teams have a knack for creating instant classics whenever they meet in the BIG EAST Tournament, and this chapter of their bitter rivalry did not disappoint. With a trip to the semifinals on the line, it was a battle for the ages between the conference heavyweights.

Coming off of a first-round bye, the Bluejays were met head on by a confident Pirates squad. In the game prior, The Hall had dismantled the No. 11 Xavier Musketeers 84-58, and were feeling unstoppable heading into their matchup with Creighton.

That mindset helped out early, as the Pirates were able to keep pace with a high-powered Bluejays’ offense that hit four three-pointers. Lauren Park-Lane was the catalyst for the offense early and throughout, scoring 11 points to help The Hall take a 19-18 lead heading into the second quarter.

Round One of the slugfest went to the Pirates, but it was in Round Two where the Bluejays bounced back, hitting four more threes and taking a 33-31 lead going into the half.

Creighton’s scoring came from across the lineup, as Molly Mogensen, Lauren Jenson, and Emma Ronsiek combined for 25 of the Bluejays’ points, while The Hall had to rely on Park-Lane’s fantastic 18-point half to stay in the contest.

The third quarter was when the lightening-fast action slowed down, with both teams settling down on defense to make some key stops. Creighton went 0-for-5 from deep thanks to a focused and effective defensive gameplan from coach Tony Bozzella. This strategy helped Seton Hall take a 49-42 lead with just one quarter remaining.

It was in this quarter that the Bluejays would slowly chip away at the Pirates’ lead, before tying it up with a wild three from Ronsiek to make it 63-63 with eight seconds remaining. After a missed game-winning shot from Park-Lane, the matchup would head into OT.

The squads would continue to trade buckets until the bitter end. After Mya Bembry hit a go-ahead layup with just 11 seconds remaining, Maly would secure a missed shot and deliver the knockout punch as time expired, making it 75-74 Bluejays with zeros left on the clock.

In the painful loss, LPL set a Seton Hall record for most points scored in a BIG EAST Tournament game, with 36 off of 14-of-30 shooting and a career-high eight rebounds along with six assists. This defeat was especially difficult for the senior, as it may have been her final time suiting up in the blue and white.

As the Pirates’ season comes to an end, one can only wonder what the future holds for stars Lauren Park-Lane and Sidney Cooks as they look to continue to showcase their talents at the professional level.

There is still the possibility of a bid for the WNIT, but as of now, no statement from Seton Hall has been made.

For coverage of Seton Hall women’s basketball, WSOU has you covered year-round on WSOU.net and on the airwaves at 89.5 FM.

Spencer Gonzales is the Sports Web Editor and an Assistant Sports Director at WSOU and can be reached at spencer.gonzales@student.shu.edu.

Posted in: Sports, Women's Basketball

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