JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (AP) — Aaliyah Collins had 21 points, Anna Hager scored 18 and High Point held on for a 71-67 victory over Radford on Sunday night to win the Big South Conference Championship and earn an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament for a second straight season.
Collins and Hager took over for top-seeded High Point (27-5) on a night when Macy Spencer, the league’s leading scorer at 18.8 per game, was held to six points.
The Panthers beat No. 2 seed Radford (22-12) to earn their third trip to the main event, also appearing in 2021.
Hager hit a 3-pointer and Brecken Snotherly followed with a three-point play as High Point jumped out to an 8-0 lead. Radford battle all the way back to tie it 16-all on Angelina Nice’s tip-in before Collins made two free throws with one second left to put the Panthers up two heading to the second quarter.
Kirah Dandridge hit two 3-pointers and the Highlanders outscored High Point by five to take a 32-29 lead into halftime.
Cate Carlson sank a 3-pointer to give Radford a 39-33 lead, but Hager answered with a 3 to spark 13-2 run capped by Spencer’s 3-pointer and High Point moved in front 46-41 with four minutes left in the third quarter. The run grew to 20-4 and the Panthers led 56-45 heading to the final period.
Joi Williams buried 3-pointers on both sides of a Dandridge basket in an 8-0 spurt to cut the deficit to three less than 90 seconds into the final 10 minutes.
Williams drove for a layup to tie it 63-all with 4:50 remaining, but Collins and Hager had back-to-back baskets and the Panthers stayed in front from there.
Williams had 30 points to pace Radford and Ellie Taylor scored 10.
The Highlanders last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2019 after making three appearances in the 1990s.
The High Point men’s team also advanced to the NCAA Tournament
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