Box Score JACKSON, Tenn. -- The Lindsey Wilson College women's basketball team experienced a new way to lose during this young 2006-07 season. This afternoon, it was a last-second shot that handed the Blue Raiders a loss, their fifth in as many games.
Bethel (Tenn.) College junior forward Whitney Baird sank a 12-foot high-arching shot from the right baseline with one second remaining to give the Wildcats (3-0) an 84-82 win over the Blue Raiders (0-5) in the second-day of the Lambuth (Tenn.) University Tip-Off Classic.

Lindsey Wilson tied the score on freshman guard Cheslee Elkins' three-point shot from the left side with 24 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, Bethel senior guard Suzanne Seat missed a close-in shot, but the ball was knocked out of bounds by the Blue Raiders with four seconds left on the clock.

Baird took the inbounds pass, squared herself to the basket and floated a jump-shot over the outstretched arms of Blue Raider junior guard Kara Osterfeld.

Osterfeld's desperation shot from near mid-court didn't draw iron, and the Blue Raiders remained winless on the season.

"We did play better today, but we're still making too many of the same mistakes," Lindsey Wilson coach John B. Wethington said. "This is a game we should have won, but we didn't take care of the ball and do the things we needed to do to get the win."

A night after committing a program-high 47 turnovers in an 84-59 loss here to No. 25 Lambuth, the Blue Raiders kept their miscues against Bethel to 25 -- despite playing without the services of senior point guard Tiffany Reid, who is sidelined for about a week because of minor sinus surgery.

"But we are still making way too many unforced turnovers, and that is just killing us," Wethington said. "There's no consistency at all for us on the offensive end."

Another reason for the problems on the court, Wethington said, is no player has stepped forward to be a team leader.

"Our upperclassmen are not playing like upperclassmen," he said. "Everybody is looking for someone to be a leader but no one is willing to do it."

The one bright spot for the Blue Raiders in this afternoon's loss was the play of junior center Terran Duncan. In more than 36 minutes of action, Duncan hit 10-of-15 free field goals for a game-high 23 points and tied for the team lead in rebounds with five.

"Terran Duncan is about the only bright spot on the team right now," Wethington said. "She's playing hard at both ends of the court. When we get our offense set up and get the ball into her, we're a very good team."

Another bright spot for the Blue Raiders was their field-goal shooting. LWC connected on a season-best 53.8 percent (28-of-52) of their shots and hit 23-of-30 free throws. The Blue Raiders also out-rebounded the Wildcats 30-25.

A field goal by Duncan was part of a 7-1 run midway through the second half that put the Blue Raiders in front 62-53 with 12:09 left, their largest lead of the game.

But Bethel went on a 13-4 run over the next 3:39 to tie the game at 66-66. From there on out, the game would have four lead changes and three ties.

The Wildcats appeared to have put the game on ice when a three-point field goal by senior guard Amanda Cunningham gave Bethel an 82-77 lead with 1:39 left. But the Blue Raiders answered with five points -- a layup by junior guard Krystal Jackson and then Elkins' three-pointer -- which set the stage for Baird's game-winning heroics.

"I don't understand how some of the smartest kids on campus when it comes to the classroom keep making the same mistakes on the court," Wethington said, referring to his roster full of Dean's List students. "I've never had a team that I can't motivate, but I will find a way to motivate them."

In addition to Duncan's 23, LWC was paced by senior forward Shola Aladejebi's 19 points and Jackson's 14 points. Four Bethel players scored in double figures.

LAMBUTH UNIVERSITY TIP-OFF CLASSIC
LINDSEY WILSON COLLEGE -- 82
Kera Gibson 1-3 0-0 3, Shola Aladejebi 6-7 7-9 19, Rudy Brents 0-0 2-2 2, Cheslee Elkins 3-10 2-2 9, Kara Osterfeld 3-4 1-3 8, Mary Jenna Nixon 0-1 3-4 3, Krystal Jackson 5-11 4-4 14, Moneta Anderson 0-1 0-0 0, Alique Taylor 0-0 1-2 1, Terran Duncan 10-15 3-4 23. Totals 28-52 23-30 82.

BETHEL COLLEGE -- 84
Erin Meyer 2-9 2-2 6, Amanda Cunningham 5-13 0-0 10, Suzanne Seat 1-3 4-6 6, Jenna Roney 6-8 3-4 16, Whitney Baird 3-8 2-2 8, Lauren Herrera 0-0 0-0 0, Monica Jones 1-1 0-0 3, Meagan Price 0-1 1-1 1, Lacelia Newman 2-4 0-0 5, Nina Djokovic 5-6 2-4 14, Jelena Budimir 4-7 3-5 11. Totals 29-60 17-24 84.

Field Goal Percentage: LWC 53.8%, BC 48.3%. Three-point field goals: LWC 3-9 (Elkins 1-4, Jackson 0-1, Gibson 1-2, Osterfeld 1-2), BC 9-21 (Cunningham 4-10, Roney 1-1, Baird 0-2, Jones 1-1, Newman 1-2, Djokovic 2-3). Rebounds: LWC 30 (Duncan, Jackson 5), BC 25 (Roney and Budimir 6). Fouls: LWC 24, BC 25. Fouled out: LWC Anderson, BC Budimir. Technical: none. Assists: LWC 9 (Elkins 3), BC 14 (Seat 5). Steals: LWC 7 (Osterfeld 3), BC 8 (Seat 3). Blocked shots: LWC 1 (Osterfeld), BC 3 (Budimir, Meyer, Roney). Turnovers: LWC 25, BC 26.