Iverson's points, block push Otahkians to win

MARTIN, Tenn. -- Pam Iversen led Southeast Missouri State University in scoring Thursday, but it was her defensive play in the closing seconds that helped bail out the Otahkians.

Iversen, who had 15 points, came up with a block just a few feet from the basket with less than a minute remaining and the Otahkians clinging to a one-point lead.

That rejection, along with two free throws by LaShelle Porter and a defensive play from Veronica Benson, helped the Otahkians hold off Tennessee-Martin 64-59.

Southeast, with its second consecutive win after a three-game losing streak, is 10-6 overall and 3-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference. UTM is 3-12, 1-3 in the OVC.

"I was a little cautious and nervous because I didn't know if they were going to call a foul," Iverson said of her late block.

Iversen said she was relieved that the Otahkians were able to squeeze out a victory despite a so-so performance.

"We didn't really play that well, even though we did win," she said. "But it's always hard to win on the road so we're happy about that."

Iversen, a senior center who is five points shy of becoming the 12th Otahkian to 1,000 career points, led a strong Southeast rebounding performance with 12.

Porter added nine rebounds from her point guard spot as the Otahkians owned the boards by a 45-27 count. That helped offset 19 turnovers and poor free-throw shooting (11 of 20).

"Negatively, we had too many turnovers and we shot 55 percent from the line," Southeast coach Ed Arnzen said. "But positively, we dominated the boards, LaShelle hit two big free throws and Pam and Veronica came up with big defensive plays."

Also scoring in double figures for the Otahkians were Benson and Lori Chase with 11 points each. Benson also had six assists to go with seven rebounds from her guard spot.

Southeast got a lift off the bench from freshman Andrea Koeper, who contributed eight first-half points to help keep the Otahkians within striking distance as they trailed 35-29 at the intermission. Koeper has been solid in recent games as her playing time has increased.

Amy Watson paced the Skyhawks with 16 points but no other UTM player reached double figures.

Thomas scored inside with 12:47 remaining in the second half to pull Southeast into a 43-43 tie, then with 11:08 left Porter's steal and layup put the Otahkians ahead 45-43 for their first lead since late in the opening half.

The Otahkians would not trail again and eventually built a 53-45 lead with under nine minutes to go, but the victory would not come easily.

A 7-0 UTM run trimmed Southeast's advantage to 53-52. The Otahkians later went ahead 57-52, but the Skyhawks kept charging and two Watson free throws with 2:02 left pulled them to within 60-59.

UTM then had a golden opportunity to take the lead after a Southeast turnover, but Watson missed a wide-open layup. The Otahkians followed with another turnover, but Iversen came up with her big block.

Porter made both ends of a one-and-one with 30 seconds left for a 62-59 lead. Then, as the Skyhawks tried to set up a late 3-point shot, Benson made a steal and coasted in for a layup with six seconds remaining to ice things.