NORFOLK, Va. — Jakayla Johnson scored the first six points of overtime to lead Southern Mississippi to an 86-83 victory over Old Dominion on Friday night at Chartway Arena. The Lady Eagles overcame a 17-point deficit late in the third quarter to secure their first win at the arena in four tries.
Southern Miss (12-10, 5-6 Sun Belt) trailed by as many as 17 points with 2:26 remaining in the third quarter. The team outscored the Monarchs 42-22 over the final 18 minutes of regulation and overtime, led by Johnson’s 32 points. Hayleigh Breland and Carly Keats added 21 and 20 points, respectively, combining for 73 of the team’s 86 points.
Old Dominion (13-10, 5-6 Sun Belt) led 27-18 after the first quarter and maintained a sizable lead through much of the third. Simaru Fields led the Monarchs with 26 points. The Monarchs opened the game with an early run, but Southern Miss responded with a rally that included Johnson’s free throws early in the game, and Meloney Thames giving the team its first lead of the day with 4:21 left in the first quarter.
Both teams shot 33% from the floor, but Southern Miss made 15 of 17 free throws to stay close. Breland scored 13 points at halftime, while Johnson added 11. The Monarchs built their largest lead of the game in the third quarter after a 10-1 run, forcing Southern Miss to call a timeout down 47-38. ODU extended its lead to 17 points before the Lady Eagles mounted a late comeback, trailing 64-55 entering the final quarter.
In the closing minutes, Johnson scored her 24th point to cut the margin to 76-71. Whitney Hart then scored a bucket to make it a three-point game with 1:07 remaining. Johnson’s missed free throw kept the game within reach, but ODU hit one of two free throws, leaving the score at 83-81 with 26 seconds left. Hart grabbed an offensive rebound and scored to tie the game with 19.3 seconds remaining, sending the game to overtime.
During the extra period, Johnson sparked an 8-0 run, scoring six of those points. Old Dominion’s Riley Stack made a free throw to break the run, but Southern Miss held on to win. The Lady Eagles called a timeout in the final seconds to run out the clock, and ODU’s final shot missed out of bounds.
The victory ends a four-game losing streak in Sun Belt play and marks Southern Miss’s first win at Chartway Arena. The team will next host James Madison on Feb. 4 at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg, Miss.
