DeAshia Young (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Public Safety Academy (Labette CC)) exploded for a career-high 35 points as the Lincoln University women's basketball team dropped their Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association opener 78-73 in overtime to Johnson c. Smith University Thursday night at Manuel Rivero Hall.
 
The Lions fall to 4-6 overall and 0-1 in league play.  JCSU improves to 2-5 and 1-0 in league contests.
 
Young connected on 14 of 22 shots from the field including two three point field goals and five free throws to eclipse her career high of 31 points set earlier this season with 35.  Young also grabbed 13 rebounds, dished out five assists and had five steals.   Alisia Machado (Brooklyn, N.Y./Medgar Evars Prep (Grambling)) joined her in double figures with 13 points.   Jada Queen (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Catholic) added 11 rebounds.
 
Malia Rivers paced the Golden Bulls, who rallied from a 10-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter.  Rivers was 7-17 from the field, including four three-point field goals enroute to a team high 22 points.  Blaire Thomas added 17 points while Jakeyah McNeil chipped in ten.
 
The Golden Bulls used a 16-2 run in the fourth quarter to erase a ten-point deficit and take a 61-57 lead with 4:15 left in regulation.  Lincoln battled back with young making a traditional three-point play to pull within one 63-62  before JCSU again went up by four 66-62 with 36 seconds left.  Another basket from young closed the gap to two and after forcing a turnover, Queen made the put-back jumper to tie the game at 66-66 with 16 seconds left.  The Lions got a defensive stop and had a chance to win it with 2.1 seconds remaining but Queen's shot was shot and the game went to overtime.
 
Rivers opened the overtime with a three-ball and the Golden Bulls never trailed throughout the extra stanza, opening up a seven point lead in the final seconds before settling for the five point win 78-73. 
 
Earlier in the game, it was the Lions that produced a dominant run, with a 10-0 spurt to erase a five-point deficit and open up a 24-19 lead with 3:52 left in the second quarter.  The Lions upped their lead to six in the final minute before setting in for a 33-29 lead at halftime.
 
Rivers pulled the Golden Bulls within one at the start of the third quarter before the Lions went on a 12-4 run to take a nine point lead 45-36 with 5:22 left in the quarter.  DeeDee Irwin's (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville Area) three-pointer with 3:23 gave Lincoln their biggest lead of the game at 12, 51-39 before heading into the fourth quarter with a ten point cushion at 55-45.
 
Free throws played a telling role in the outcome as Lincoln missed 17 shots from the charity stripe over the course of the game, connecting on just 14 of 31 attempts.  In contrast the Golden Bulls made 21 of 23 shots.  Lincoln finished the game shooting 34.2% from the field while JCSU shot 36.8%.  The Lions had three fewer turnovers 26-29 which led to a 28-17 scoring advantage in the points off turnovers category.  Lincoln also dominated on the boards, outrebounding the Golden Bulls 57-45 which included 30 offensive rebounds.
 
The women's basketball team returns to action on Saturday, December 17, 2019 when they host Winston-Salem State University.  Tipoff is at 2 p.m.