Makana Stone went for 20 points and 14 rebounds Saturday, icing a win with four free throws in the final seconds. (Photo property Loughborough University)
Ice water in those veins.
Coupeville’s Makana Stone drained three free throws in the final 12 seconds Saturday in England, lifting the Loughborough University women’s basketball team to a thrilling 75-73 win over Nottingham Trent.
Trailing by a point, the Riders forced a turnover down low as the clock ticked down, with their American assassin fouled in the ensuing scrum.
Stone calmly drained both ends of the one-and-one to put Loughborough up 74-73, then came back around to hit another freebie after a technical foul on Nottingham’s coaching staff with just 2.8 seconds to play.
Nottingham gunner Mady Burdett, who played alongside Stone for four spectacular seasons at Whitman College, had a three-ball from the corner to win the game at the buzzer, but the ball refused to stay in the basket.
With the win, Loughborough finishes the regular season at 12-5 overall, 12-3 with Stone in the lineup, and clinches a top-three finish in the 10-team National Basketball League.
The Riders will be the league’s #2 seed headed into the playoffs, unless CoLA Southwark sweeps a pair of games this weekend.
The top eight squads, led by league champs Ipswich, begin the single-elimination playoffs next Saturday, May 15.
The battle against Nottingham Trent was a furious one, with neither squad able to pull away.
Loughborough, riding an eight-point opening quarter from Stone, led 20-15 at the first break, but was clinging to just a 34-33 advantage when halftime rolled around.
The Riders stretched their lead out, but just slightly, at 53-51 headed into the fourth quarter, and things got dicey from there.
With Stone strapped to the bench due to foul trouble, Nottingham claimed the lead at 61-60 with five-and-a-half minutes to play, and there were six lead changes over the next five minutes.
Coupeville’s progeny bounded back into the game, slapping home a layup to stake Loughborough to a 68-67 lead at the 2:30 mark.
But her former Whitman running mate was on fire, as Burdett drained a pair of three-balls to push Nottingham up 73-68.
Loughborough’s defense proved to be its biggest weapon down the stretch, with the Riders holding Nottingham scoreless over the game’s final 77 seconds.
Robyn Ainge singed the nets for a long trey to get the Riders back within a bucket, before Stone scored the game’s final four points at the charity stripe.
The former Wolf finished with a team-high 20 points (Burdett rattled the rim for 21) and snagged a game-best 14 rebounds to go with three assists and a steal.
Katie Januszewska dropped in 16 points for the Riders, while Ainge finished with 13.
On the season Stone sits with 240 points, 215 rebounds, 32 assists, 54 steals, and eight blocked shots.
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