By Alan Wiederhold
HT Athletic Communications
AUSTIN – Though it was Senior Day for the Huston-Tillotson basketball teams Saturday, a freshman made the biggest shot of the game as the Ram women stunned Paul Quinn College 80-78.
At HT's Branch Gymnasium during the school's Homecoming Week, freshman post Hayley Broussard's third-chance putback with 1.2 seconds remaining in the game stanched Paul Quinn's comeback attempt and lifted the Rams to an exciting victory in front of a near-capacity crowd.
The win gave the Rams (7-12, 3-8 HBCUAC) a split of their season series with their in-state HBCU Athletic Conference rival. HT has won seven of its last eight games against Paul Quinn, but the Tigers (14-8, 8-3 HBCUAC) claimed an 83-52 win when the teams met in Dallas in December.Â
HT senior forward Wilashia Burleson finished an assist shy of a triple-double, scoring 29 points and pulling in 16 rebounds to go along with her nine assists. Jade Hillary scored 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting from 3-point range; she also handed out four assists, blocked three shots, and grabbed three steals.
Graduate student and four-year letterwinner Destiny Stanford chipped in 12 points and four assists for the Rams, while Xaria Culver added 10 points.
Tamia Dolls scored 25 points to lead four Paul Quinn players in double-figures Saturday.
HT had reclaimed a three-point lead with 59 seconds remaining when Burleson found Serese Williams for an open layup, two of six points for the sophomore in the game. The teams then exchanged turnovers, with HT's largest crowd of the year not happy when Burleson was called for traveling in the backcourt when the Tigers were trying to foul with 28 seconds remaining.
The Ram crowd was further incensed moments later when HT's Bria Jackson was whistled for a foul against Dolls shooting a 3-pointer despite very little "contact" between the players - so little that quotation marks around the word "contact" is justified.
Dolls hit all three of her free throws to tie the game at 78-78 with 17 seconds on the clock and seemingly swung momentum to the visitors. On HT's next possession, Jackson's shot was off the mark, followed by Hilliary having her outback attempt blocked. The ball went to Broussard who hit an off-balance layup through traffic while getting fouled.
Broussard, who scored four points and grabbed nine rebounds in the game, missed the free throw, giving the Tigers one more shot to tie or win the game. The Tigers were unable to find Dolls, who shot 5-of-10 from 3-point range in the game, and Canai McPherson's 3-pointer as time expired was off the mark.
The visitors almost completed the comeback after giving up the first 12 points of the game and trailing by as much as 25-7 with four minutes to play in the opening quarter. The Rams' 12-point run to start the game began when Burleson hit two free throws after Paul Quinn was assessed an administrative technical foul due to Jamie Walker wearing the No. 9 jersey when she was listed as No. 13 in the official scorebook.
The Rams shot 41.4 percent (12 of 29) from 3-point range, their best showing this season. HT was 4-1 this season against NAIA competition when shooting better than 30 percent from long range.
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UP NEXT:
The Rams conclude the 2025-26 regular season in Marshall, Texas, when they visit Wiley. The women's-and-men's doubleheader was originally scheduled for Jan. 24, but was postponed due to the January winter ice storm that affected Texas and most of the U.S. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
– HT –
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