Broncbusters cough up 10-point lead in final four minutes; lose at home

Garden City, KS-Elysa Martinez scored 24 points, Hattie Pyle added 12, and Cowley erased a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Garden City, 74-70 Saturday afternoon at Conestoga Arena.  

Antonicia Moultrie finished with 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Broncbusters, which lost their fourth straight game to fall to 11-15 overall and 8-13 in the Jayhawk. Bruna Costa Da Silva scored 12.  

Jolie Mantz's two free throws put Garden City up, 61-51 with 3:33 remaining.  

That's when Cowley punched back. Martinez completed a three-point play, Pyle made back-to-back layups followed by two free throws, and the Tigers were within three. Moments later, Pyle beat three defenders to the rim before drawing the fifth foul on Ana Ramos Pires. She swished both free throws, Destiny Yates went 3-of-4 from the line over the next 40 seconds, and Cowley had a 69-65 advantage with 34 seconds on the clock.  

The Broncbusters still had a chance to tie the game when Costa Da Silva rattled home a 13-foot jumper while Moultrie was fouled as the ball was in the air. But the sophomore only hit 1-of-2 free throws, and Elysa Martinez drained five freebies over the final 21 seconds for the Tigers. 

Hadiya Kennerly scored 11 points for Garden City, which outscored Cowley, 18-10 in the third to turn a four-point halftime deficit into a 47-41 advantage once Moultrie drained two free throws with 1:43 to go in the period. They were up four going to the fourth.

The Broncbusters lost the game despite shooting 50 percent from the field and outrebounding Cowley, 34-17. But the kicker was 27 turnovers that resulted in 29 Tiger points.