Box Score

LAIE, Hawaii — Junior guard Zoie Sheng dribbled the length of the court and pulled up to shoot before the buzzer, but her game-tying 3-point attempt fell short and BYU-Hawaii escaped with a 92-89 win at the Cannon Activities Center in a matchup between two Pacific West Conference tournament qualifiers.
 
Academy of Art (17-10, 12-7 PacWest) erased separate eight-point and six-point deficits in the final four minutes of the game but went 1-for-5 from the field in the final 60 seconds to come up just short against the Seasiders (15-11, 12-8 PacWest). Four Urban Knights scored in double digits led by junior guard Jasmin Guinn's 23 points and nine rebounds. Guinn became the program's all-time rebounds leader, totaling 575 in her career following the contest. BYUH had six players in double figures, including 20 points from Brydgette Tatupu-Leopoldo.

It was a close game in the early going until a 9-0 ART U run started by four points from Sheng created some separation. The Seasiders rebutted with a 10-0 burst to take a lead, but free throws by senior guard Sherelle Williams broke up the streak.

After coming in around the six-minute mark, junior guard Vianai Austin scored five quick points and senior guard Madeline Martin added free throws for a 31-27 advantage, but a 12-0 push from BYUH gave them a double-digit lead. Sophomore forward D'Andree Galipeau helped ensure the margin was single digits (42-35) when she beat the halftime buzzer with a layup.

The Urban Knights made progress shortening the gap with a 10-5 start to the second period and soon back-to-back buckets by junior guard Sha'Nice Storey tied things up 50-50. BYUH held tough and still refused to relinquish the lead as Tatupu-Leopoldo hit two 3-pointers in a row to make it 69-63 with just under eight minutes left.

As ART U employed its press defense, four turnovers were forced during a 7-0 Knights run to cut an eight-point game down to one at 81-80. Academy of Art was still unable to claim a lead, however, as the Seasiders scored exclusively from the foul line in their 8-2 response.

An 89-82 BYU-Hawaii lead with under a minute to go was cut down on free throws by Sheng, Martin and then a steal in the backcourt by junior guard Regina Camera gave way to her jumper to make it 89-87 with 47 seconds on the clock. Split free throws by BYUH set up two potentially game-tying 3-pointers by Storey and Sheng, but neither connected and the Seasiders were sent back to the foul line with a chance to seal it.

Four consecutive missed free throws by BYU-Hawaii left the door wide open and, with two seconds left, Sheng was sent to the line where she made both to make it a 90-89 ballgame. The Knights fouled Tatupu-Leopoldo immediately after the inbounds pass and, though she hit both, ART U still had its final attempt by Sheng which fell just short, ending the game with BYUH in front 92-89.

"I thought the girls battled so hard to give us chance despite some adversity and foul trouble," said head coach LaNay Larson. "Obviously when a team shoots 48 free throws and you are on the road, you put yourself in a really tough situation. We need to make adjustments quicker and play smarter the entire game moving forward."

Behind Guinn's game-high 23 points, Sheng added 13 points, five rebounds, and four steals while Camera also had 13 points in just 19 minutes on the floor. Storey came off the bench to score 12 points with a pair of 3-pointers.

ART U completes its Hawaii roadtrip and the 2014-15 regular season with a 5:00 p.m. HST (7:00 p.m. PST) tipoff at Chaminade in Honolulu on Saturday, Feb. 28.