PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – Entering the fourth trailing by four, Alabama A&M (6-11, 4-3 SWAC) drilled five threes, including three that gave them the lead, as they pulled out a 70-64 victory at Prairie View (7-12, 4-4 SWAC) in an NCAA Division I women's basketball game on Monday, January 24.
 
Senior forward Dariauna Lewis (Omaha, Neb.) would deliver another incredible performance as she went 8-of-11 from the field and 8-of-10 at the foul line to finish with game-highs of 25 points and 10 boards. She would also join the 1,000-point club on the night, doing so in just three seasons on The Hill.
 
She was joined by graduate forward Teliyah Jeter (Taylors, S.C.) with a career-high 16 points to go with five caroms. Graduate guard Nigeria Jones (Lincoln, Neb.) knocked down a pair of clutch fourth quarter threes on her way to 10 points, six boards and five assists in 38 minutes and sophomore guard Darian Burgin (Cincinnati, Ohio) notched six of her nine points in a key third quarter run that tied the score. She would also add three assists and three rebounds.
 
Lewis would score the first three buckets to stake A&M to an early 6-0 lead in little more than a minute before the Panthers woke up. Over a span of 8:40 they would dominate play as they put together a 17-6 run behind five different scorers to take a 17-12 advantage by the 1:12 mark. From there the clubs would head to the second with the score at 19-16.
 
It would remain close over the first two minutes of that frame as PVAMU held only a 24-20 lead before the Bulldogs scored five straight to retake the lead. That, however, would set off a stretch of two ties and six lead changes, the last of which would see A&M use another 5-0 burst to go from down 32-31 to leading 36-32 at the break.
 
It would be an abrupt change in momentum as the teams opened the third with the Panthers exploding for a 9-3 run that flipped the script and put them ahead 41-39 by the 6:04 mark. Three free throws would then extend to a five-point margin before Burgin scored all six points in a 6-2 run that knotted it up at 45-45 with 1:54 left in the frame. In that remaining time, Diana Rosenthal then capitalized on four trips to the charity stripe to make it 49-45 heading to the fourth.
 
The teams would set a frenetic pace in that final period as they traded the first three buckets over the opening 1:12 to see the margin cut to two. Following a basket by Kennedy Paul to double the lead, A&M would score five straight, capping the stretch with a three from freshman guard Ja'Niah Alexander (Rex, Ga.) at the 7:28 mark.
 
That would then once again spark back-to-back lead changes as Brittany Garner notched a layup and Jones drilled another three, this one putting the Bulldogs up 58-56 a minute after Alexander's trey accomplished the same feat. Garner would come right back with a jumper to tie it but once again Alabama A&M answered with another long ball to take the lead, this one by junior guard Jill Harris (Navarre, Fla.) for a 61-58 advantage with 3:38 to play.
 
Following a split of a pair of free throws, the three-point onslaught would continue as Jones drilled another for a 64-59 lead with just under two minutes to play. The defense would then take over, holding PVAMU scoreless for the next 1:18 enroute to a 70-64 victory.
 
Rosenthal led the Panthers with 19 points and added three boards and a pair of assists while Garner had 11 points and five caroms. Paul and Shira Patton each chipped in with 10 points and Kennedi Heard hauled in a team-high nine rebounds. Kirdis Clark rounded things out with five assists, two steals and four points.
 
Alabama A&M returns home for the first of two games, beginning with a matchup with league newcomer Florida A&M on Saturday, January 29. Tip-off is set 2 p.m. at Elmore Gymnasium.