Westminster basketball: Griffins rally for 68-65 win at No. 14 Rogers State

CLAREMONT, Okla. — The fifth-ranked Westminster College women’s basketball team overcame an eight-point second half deficit to defeat No. 14 Rogers State (Okla.) 68-65 on Saturday afternoon.

Westminster (9-2) trailed for most of the contest, and with 13:38 to play in the second half, it was a 45-37 lead for Rogers State (10-3). The Griffins took their first lead of the second half with 7:38 remaining on a three by Kelsi Wells that capped an 11-2 run. RSU would respond with five straight points to take a 56-53 lead at the 4:08 mark.

A basket from Cydney Tibbitts and a bucket and two free throws from Nicole Yazzie put Westminster back in front for good. The Griffins sealed the victory by going 10-of-10 at the foul line in the final minute.

Westminster shot 40.4 percent from the floor in the game and went 10-of-24 from beyond the arc (41.7 percent). The team out-rebounded RSU 35-31 and turned 10 offensive rebounds into five second chance points. The Griffins forced 19 turnovers, which resulted in 18 points, and they held the Hillcats to 1-of-8 from deep in the second half.

Tibbitts had a huge game for the Griffins as she finished with 25 points leading all scorers. She made four triples and had eight rebounds. Wells also came up with four makes from beyond the arc as she finished with 14 points and two steals. Yazzie had 12 points and five assists with Tia Pappas going for 11 points and six rebounds off the bench.

Leah Smith led RSU with 23 points on 7-of-20 shooting. Sierra Cornwell added 17 points and four assists for the Hillcats.

Westminster returns to action Monday when it faces Oklahoma Baptist at noon in Shawnee, Okla.