DANVILLE, Va. -- Averett's Brianna Taylor missed a potential go-ahead jumper in the final seconds and the Methodist women's basketball team held on to defeat the Cougars, 66-64, on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Monarchs broke a 60-60 tied with 3:22 left in the game when Monique Lofton drilled a three-pointer for a three-point lead. Taylor pulled the Cougars within a point on the ensuing possession by converting a pair of free throws for a 63-62 score with 3:00 on the clock.
 
Alexis Wallace gave MU a little more breathing room with a pair of charity tosses at the 2:22 mark, but Taylor answered once more for Averett, scoring off a feed from Aundrea Burns that made it 65-64 in favor of the Monarchs with just 1:34 to play.
 
Methodist failed to extend its lead on its next two trips down the court, but the Monarchs kept Averett from pulling any closer by forcing back-to-back turnovers from the home team. With 18 seconds to play, Lofton was fouled and sent to the line, but she missed a pair of free throws and Averett came up with the defensive rebound. Following a timeout, Taylor failed to give Averett the lead when she missed a jumper with eight seconds to play, but AU secured the offensive rebound and called timeout once again.
 
Coming out of the stoppage, Taylor again attempted to push the Cougars in front, but she was off target again and Sydney Bryan secured the rebound for the Monarchs, and after getting fouled, split a pair of free throws with one second left to seal the contest.
 
The tense final seconds followed a second-half comeback by Methodist. The Monarchs trailed by as many as 14 points in the second half and found themselves trailing by eight points (57-49) with under seven minutes on the clock.
 
Ayanna Pegues started a 9-1 run for the Monarchs with a jumper, then blocked Samm Chandler's layup attempt at the other end. After an Averett free throw, Jalisia Campbell drilled 3-of-4 free throws, Alexis Wallace hit a pair of foul shots, and Campbell capped the burst with a short jump shot that tied the contest at 58-58.
 
In the first half, MU led 31-16 with just over five minutes left in the stanza before the Cougars closed the opening period on an 11-2 run to pull within six points at intermission. Burns capped the run with a steal and a layup in transition just six seconds before the buzzer.
 
For the game, Methodist shot just 37.7 percent from the floor (23-61), while Averett did not fare much better, shooting 38.2 percent (26-28). The Monarchs held a huge advantage at the free-throw line, converting 15-of-21 attempts, while Averett was a woeful 9-of-17. Methodist also outrebounded Averett 47-41.
 
Lofton, one of five MU players to reach double figures in scoring, led the Monarchs with 15 points, hitting 5-of-13 three pointers. Pegues added 13 points, Bryan and Campbell scored 12 apiece, and Wallace finished with 10. Bryan notched a double-double by pulling down 11 rebounds and Pegues had nine boards.
 
Taylor led Averett with 17 points, and Chandler recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Jessica Myers chipped in 11 points, four assists and four steals, and Burns had five points, seven assists, and eight steals.
 
The Monarchs play their final home game of the regular season on Sunday when they host Greensboro at 2:00 pm.
 
 
 
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