GUNNISON, Colo. — A clutch 3-pointer by Kylie Kravig just before the final horn sent Tuesday night's RMAC rivalry game to a second overtime, and Colorado Mesa finally pulled away just enough to claim a 76-70 victory over Western Colorado at Paul Wright Gymnasium.
Kravig chased down a missed 3-pointer by Josee Steadman with the Mavericks trailing 64-61 with four seconds to play. She sprinted back behind the 3-point line and buried the open jumper to put five more minutes on the clock.
Colorado Mesa (16-4, 10-3 RMAC) quickly took the lead in the second overtime by going into Olivia Reed, who tied her season and career high of 30 points. She hit a layup 14 seconds into the second OT, then scored a second-chance bucket after Kravig grabbed another offensive board.
Kravig, who finished with 15 points, hit a long jumper midway through the period, and she and Mason Rowland combined to make six free throws in the final 1:38 to keep the Mountaineers at bay.
Neither team shot the ball well — CMU shot only 32.5 percent from the field (27 of 83) and missed chance after chance at the rim, but also grabbed 31 offensive rebounds and 67 in all and scored 26 second-chance points. Western finished shooting 29.6 percent (21-71), but made eight 3-pointers to the Mavericks' three in its upset bid.
The 67 rebounds rank second all-time for a single game in program history, well behind the 85 Mesa recorded in 2003 against Johnson & Wales.
Western Colorado double-teamed Reed inside, making the sophomore forward work for her points, hitting 13 of 27 shots. She had more offensive rebounds (13) than defensive (11), giving her a career-high 24 boards. That effort is tied for second-most in a single game in program history, only three shy of Pam DeCosta's record of 27 set in 1985. Reed is the first Maverick with 20 or more rebounds in a game since Susan Luecke had 21 in 2000. She fouled out with less than to minutes to play in the second overtime battling for another rebound.
It was Reed's seventh double-double of the season and her first since Dec. 15 (24/16 vs. Adams State). She's reached double figures in either points or rebounds in all but two games this season.
Kravig had a relatively quiet night until the overtime sessions, scoring 10 of her 15 points after regulation.
The game was tied a dozen times and there were 19 lead changes — the Mavs' biggest lead was seven in the final seconds of the second overtime, and they overcame a nine-point deficit with 3:22 left in the third quarter.
The Mavericks kept attacking the rim, outscoring the Mountaineers (5-14, 2-11) 42-20 in the paint and had 16 more points on second chances. Western got 18 points from Ivey Schmidt, 17 from Brooklyn Seymour, and Natalie Jojola and Alyssa Eckroth added 14 and 10, respectively, off the bench, helping keep the upset bid alive. The Mountaineers lost their leading scorer, Rachel Cockman, to an injury in the first minute of the game.
Rowland had 16 points and a career-high 12 rebounds and added three steals for the Mavericks, who return to Brownson Arena at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday against Westminster University.
