BIRMINGHAM, Ala. | Amiah Simmons scored a career-high 34 points as the Alabama A&M University women's basketball team rallied from a 23-point second-half deficit, but could not hold on to a slim lead down the stretch in falling to Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 82-74, in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Women's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals on Thursday at Bartow Arena.
 
Alabama A&M, which ended its season at 15-16, trailed 64-41 with 2:29 remaining in the third quarter. Yet, the Bulldogs rallied all the way back, using a furious 16-2 run in the fourth and grabbed a 74-71 lead before being outscored, 11-3, during the final 1:48. Arkansas-Pine Bluff (17-15), which went 10-of-12 from behind the 3-point line in the first half, advanced to Friday's SWAC Women's Basketball Tournament semifinals and will meet top seed Jackson State at 5:30 p.m. 
 
"I am so proud of our young ladies for competing and fighting," Alabama A&M head coach Margaret Richards said. "We were down by 23 and they could have very easily packed it in and gave up. But they competed and fought extremely hard like I knew they would. We came up short tonight, but I love how hard we fought and played."
 
Simmons paced Alabama A&M with 34 points, including a career-high five 3-pointers, along with nine rebounds, three steals and two assists. Chynell Mitchell added 10 points, two boards, two assists, one block and one steal, while Alisha Wilson chipped in 10 points, six boards and one steal.
 
Zaay Green scored 19 of her team-high 32 points in the first half, with eight assists, six rebounds and one steal. Kaila Walker poured in 22 points, on 7-of-9 shooting, with three boards, while Tia Morgan tallied 10 points, five assists and two boards.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Alabama A&M started slow, going nearly four minutes to open the game without a field goal as Arkansas-Pine Bluff built a 13-4 advantage after a Tia Morgan 3-pointer with 5:44 remaining
• The Golden Lions stretched the lead to 20-6 after a Green 3-pointer with 3:17 remaining
• A Morgan triple extended the lead to 26-9 with just over a minute to play as Simmons closed the period with a layup as UAPB took a 26-11 advantage into the second
• Free throws by Chynell Mitchell and a 3-pointer by Simmons closed UAPB's lead to 33-20 with 5:19 left
• However, UAPB continued its blistering percentage from behind the 3-point line as Green and Kaila Walker drained back-to-back triples as the Golden Lions extended the margin to 45-25 with 1:28 remaining
• A Morgan three as time expired sent UAPB into the break with a 50-29 lead
• Alabama A&M got a 3-pointer by Simmons with 5:30 remaining in the third as UAPB led, 58-39
• The Bulldogs trimmed the margin to 67-49 right before the end of the period on a Mitchell jumper
• Alabama A&M used a 16-2 run in the fourth quarter, cutting the margin to 71-65 with just under four minutes to play
• A Simmons triple and a layup gave Alabama A&M a 74-71 lead with 1:48 left
• However, back came UAPB as Walker and Green sank free throws, with Walker draining the trey to give the Golden Lions a 78-74 advantage with exactly 14 seconds to play 
• A turnover forced the Bulldogs to foul with 11 seconds left and UAPB sealed the game at the foul line

GAME NOTES

• Alabama A&M shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the floor and 70.0 percent (14-of-20) from the free-throw line
• The Bulldogs grabbed 27 rebounds, with 10 coming on the offensive glass
• Amiah Simmons registered a career-high 34 points, including a career-high five 3-pointers, along with nine rebounds, three steals and two assists
• Chynell Mitchell added 10 points, two boards, two assists, one block and one steal
• Alisha Wilson chipped in 10 points, six boards and one steal
• The Bulldogs finished with 36 points in the paint, 22 points off 17 UAPB turnovers, 12 second-chance points, 10 bench points and four fastbreak points
• Arkansas-Pine Bluff went 25-of-50 shooting (50.0 percent), including 13-of-20 (65.0 percent) from behind the 3-point line and 19-of-26 (73.1 percent) from the foul line
• The Golden Lions grabbed 37 rebounds, including 26 off the defensive glass
• Zaay Green scored 19 of her team-high 32 points in the first half, with eight assists, six rebounds and one steal
• Kaila Walker poured in 22 points, on 7-of-9 shooting, with three boards
• Tia Morgan tallied 10 points, five assists and two boards.
• The Golden Lions finished with 22 points in the paint, 11 points off nine AAMU turnovers, 10 second-chance points, eight bench points and six fastbreak points

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