BIG RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Wayne State University women's basketball team (0-2 overall) played its second consecutive game against a ranked opponent on Sunday to begin the 2016-17 campaign.  The Warriors trailed by 14 early in the third quarter, rallied to take a two-point lead with 3:30 left in the contest, but the ninth-ranked Bellarmine Knights scored 10 of the game's final 15 points to edge out WSU 79-76 on the second day of the Bulldog Classic hosted by Ferris State.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Bellarmine scored the first six points of the contest until sophomore Ja'Nae Williams (Detroit, Mich. / Martin Luther King) scored off a feed from freshman Nastassja Chambers (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Arbor Prep) at the 8:35 mark.  BU held a 10-6 lead before outscoring the Warriors 10-2 in a 100-second span to open a 20-8 advantage.  Back-to-back buckets by junior Shannon Wilson (West Bloomfield, Mich. / Bloomfield Hills) and sophomore India Hawkins (Detroit, Mich. / Edison Public School Academy) preceded a triple by sophomore Paige Villemure (Flat Rock, Mich.) which pulled WSU within seven (22-15) with just under three minutes remaining in the opening stanza.  Wayne State trailed 32-21 after the first period.

The Warrior defense held Bellarmine without a point for the first 2:30 of the second quarter, while Hawkins drained a three-pointer and Chambers scored from down low to make it a six-point game (32-26).  BU's Raven Merriweather tallied the next five points to push the lead to double digits and WSU was not closer than nine the rest of the first half.  After a torrid first quarter that saw 53 points scored, the teams combined for just 18 points in the second stanza.

After a lay-up by senior Christina Green () to start the third quarter, the Knights scored the next five points for a 46-32 advantage and their largest lead of the game.  Two free throws by Green and a Williams basket came before Merriweather's triple which extended the Bellarmine margin to 13 (49-36).  A 9-2 run by the Warriors cut their deficit to six (51-45) with 3:49 remaining in the third period.  Wilson hit a shot from beyond the arc just before the quarter concluded pulling Wayne State within four at 59-55.

BU's Sarah Galvin made a lay-up to give the Knights a 67-61 lead just before the mid-point of the fourth quarter.  WSU responded with a 7-0 spurt which included back-to-back triples by Wilson and Hawkins giving the Warriors a 68-67 lead with 4:02 left.  Following a Bellarmine bucket, Chambers made 3-of-4 free throw attempts in WSU's next two possessions giving the Warriors a 71-69 lead.  Galvin made two foul shots to knot the game at 71, then the Wayne State offense went scoreless from the floor (just one made free throw) with two turnovers and two missed field goal attempts in its next four offensive series.  With Bellarmine leading 76-72, Chambers had a steal and bucket to make it a two-point game with 61 seconds left.  BU's Beth Bowers split a pair from the charity stripe, and Williams sank two free throws to make it a one-point contest (77-76) with 16 seconds left.  Destony Curry sealed the win for Bellarmine with a pair of free throws in the final four seconds.

TEAM STATS

Bellarmine shot 46 percent (26-of-56) from the floor compared to 44 percent for WSU (27-of-61).  Both teams made six triples with BU taking 17 shots (35 percent) and the Warriors 18 triple tries (33 percent).  The Knights were 21-of-26 (81 percent) from the foul line, with Wayne State making 67 percent (16-of-24).

WSU LEADERS

Chambers and Wilson each had 17 points as five Warriors scored in double figures.  Green nearly had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

BELLARMINE LEADERS

Galvin totaled a game-best 19 points and was one of four Knights with five rebounds.  Merriweather contributed 18 points, including three triples.

UP NEXT

Wayne State begins a five-game home stand with a non-conference contest at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Matthaei vs. Southern Indiana.