Box Score Box Score

PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO--Oregon State used a decisive 28-9 run in the second half and held off the Winthrop Eagles for a 68-64 victory to spoil a double-double performance by Dequesha McClanahan in the winner's bracket semi-finals of the 2012 Hardwood Tournament of Hope.

The loss evens Winthrop's record at 2-2 as they will now face the loser of the No. 7 Louisville vs. Gonzaga game in Thursday's third-place game that is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. EST.

Dequesha McClanahan, who hit the game-winning shot on Tuesday night against Mississippi State, achieved her first double-double of the season with a game-high 21 points and 11 assists while playing the entire 40 minutes of the game.  Diana Choibekova finished with 12, all in the second half, while Samiya Wright had 11 for the Eagles.  Oregon State placed nine players in the scoring column as Patricia Bright led the Beavers with 14 and Ruth Hamblin came off the bench to score 10.

Winthrop shot 38 percent on 22 of 58 from the field, but was able to keep the game within striking distance by connecting on 10 of 24 from behind the arc (41.7 pct.).  OSU won the rebound battle 39-32.  Nunn led the Eagles with seven boards.

Winthrop trailed 31-28 at halftime, but came out of the locker room to outscore the Beavers 13-2 to open the final period to take its largest lead of the game at 41-33  on a 3-pointer by Samiya Wright with 16:25 left to play. After OSU's leading scorer Patricia Bright answered with a bucket inside that cut the deficit to six, the turning point of the game occurred after Beavers head coach Scott Rueck was whistled for a technical with 16 minutes remaining that sent Winthrop to the free throw stripe for two shots.

Wright missed both free throws and the Beavers responded with the 28-9 run that gave them an insurmountable 61-50 lead with less than four minutes remaining in the game.  

Winthrop cut the deficit to five at 66-61 following a steal and layup by Wright, but only 55 seconds showed on the clock.  Gibson nailed the door shut on any thoughts of Winthrop comeback when she knocked down two free throws with 28 ticks left on the clock to put OSU up 68-61.  Choibekova drilled a 3-pointer just before the buzzer as the Beavers advanced to the championship game.

"It was a tough ball game," said Winthrop head coach Kevin Cook.  "I felt we went toe to toe with a PAC 12 school, but once again we got hurt on the inside.  We are playing tough, but we need to improve our interior defense and of course our rebounding.  We are going to need some great bounce back because whoever we play on Thanksgiving Day is going to be quite a challenge."

Winthrop took an early five-point lead iat 9-4 n the opening four minutes of the game after the Eagles drilled three straight 3-pointers, including one by Samiya Wright and two by McClanahan. 

The Eagles still led two more times in the first half by five at 15-10 and the last time at 17-12 when Schaquilla Nunn just beat the shot clock with a hook shot at the 8:40 mark.  But from that point on, Oregon State scored seven unanswered points to take a 19-17 lead. 

Winthrop's Taylor Calvert knotted the game at 19 all at the 6:24 mark, before a 3-pointer by Khadidja Toure gave the Beavers a three-point advantage at 22-19.  OSU took its largest lead of the first period at six points twice in the final 2:44 and led 31-25 before McClanahan connected on her third trey of the first half 24 seconds before the half ended..