#9 Basha defeats #4 Hamilton for first time since 2014

The Basha Bears defended their home court with a 76-69 win over Hamilton in what was one of their biggest wins in program history.

In the first two minutes of the game, it seemed as though Basha was the only team on the court. 

The Bears got hot from behind the arc as senior guards Madison Garner and Rose Bosch each had a three-pointer.

Out of the gate, Basha held an 8-0 lead and forced Hamilton to burn an early timeout, not even two minutes into the contest. 

Basha would control the rest of the first quarter after the remarkable start. 

Junior guard Terrais-Joi Coleman played well on both sides of the ball and helped command the offense, allowing Basha to get out to a substantial lead. 

One of the only bright spots for Hamilton early on was senior guard Sage Henry, who had six of their 11 total first-quarter points. 

At the end of the first eight minutes, Basha led 26-11. 

The Huskies would come out in the second quarter looking like a completely different unit. 

Opening up the second quarter on a 13-4 run, the Huskies relied on senior center Taylor Sipfle who got four quick points.

Hamilton would then look to cut the lead with a barrage of three-pointers. 

Sophomore guard Destinee Benway hit three three-pointers and finished the quarter with 11 points. 

Heading into halftime, Hamilton’s strong second quarter would cut Basha’s lead to just six points. 

Basha head coach Chiniqua Bright had faith in her team after giving up a chunk of their lead that they could close it out. 

“I told them we’ve been here before, we’ve done this, we’ve played tight games,” Bright said. “I said this is it, we got this one.” 

Both teams would fight back and forth in the third quarter. 

The Bears looked to keep getting open shots from the three-point line and space the floor. 

They did just that as freshman guard Julia Collins and Bosch would each hit a pair of three-pointers in the third quarter. 

Hamilton kept their same identity, which was to go through their star player, Henry. 

Henry would not only get baskets for herself, but she was playmaking and set her Huskies teammates up for success with easy baskets. 

At the end of three quarters, Basha led 57-55 and would set up an intense fourth quarter.

Basha was determined to pull away with a win, as every time Hamilton had a chance to take the lead, the Bears would force a stop. 

The star of the fourth quarter was the Bears' senior forward Grace Beckler, who had clutch baskets time and time again. 

Beckler, who finished the game with 17 points and played great defense, mentioned they prepared a lot to come away with a win this time over Hamilton. 

“We were very focused on defense, last game we got really close, but this time we executed,” Beckler said. “I think defense wins the game.” 

In the end, Basha wouldn’t give up their lead once the entire game and broke a 12-year losing streak over Hamilton. 

“We were here when they were beating us by 40,” Bright said. “It’s really good that our hard work is finally paying off.”

Basha has only three games left in the regular season, and they fully intend to take it one game at a time before they head into a hopeful playoff run. 

“We got Chandler, another tough one, you can’t rest on anybody,” Bright said. “One game at a time is our motto.”