Weatherford, Okla. -- Tranecia Smith scored 21 to lead four Lady Evangels in double-figures as the Mid-America Christian Lady Evangels knocked off the NCAA Division II member Texas A&M Commerce Lions 97-94 in overtime at the Weatherford Chamber Basketball Classic in Weatherford, Okla.
The Lady Evangels rallied from six down with 3:39 left in the second half as a pair of free throws and a jumper from Brittany Johnson made it a two-point game at the 2:45 mark.
Layups by Smith and Melissa Aguilar followed two made free throws by Mattilyn Mcintyre that tied the score at 76-76, but a jumper from Tiffany Mitchell put the Lions back in front by two.
That would be the last points for the Lions in the second half as the Lady Evangels held them scoreless over the final 1:29 of regulation.
Aguilar then sent it to overtime with another layup with 18 seconds left.
Danielle Dixon scored the first basket of the overtime period with a layup, but a 6-0 MACU run gave the Lady Evangels an 84-80 lead.
It was an 85-84 advantage when Aguilar converted a three-point play for a six-point lead with 52 seconds left.
Dixon made it interesting by scoring the Lions' final eight points and hit a three to make it a one-point game at 95-94 with 11 seconds left.
Smith made two free throws that extended the lead to three with four seconds left and the Lady Evangels got a stop on the defensive end to close out the big victory.
The opening half set the tone for how competitive it would be down the stretch as it featured seven ties and six lead changes.
Neither team led by more than four in the first half and the Lady Evangels trailed by one when a three by Magen Roth gave MACU a 39-37 lead.
Apreia Booker hit a layup for the Lions to tie the score at 39-39 heading into the locker room.
Smith made 4-of-9 from the field but converted 13 of her 15 free throw attempts. Brittany Woodard scored 18 and pulled down a team-high six rebounds.
Roth scored 14, Aguilar added 12 and Johnson chipped in with 10.
Mcintyre scored a game-high 25 points on 7-of-13 from the floor and 8-of-11 at the foul line to lead four Lions in double-figures.
Shavon Walker added 18 and recorded a game-high seven rebounds.
The Lady Evangels (2-2) shot a blistering 56.5 percent (13-of-23) from the field in the second half after mustering only a 39.1 percent (9-of-23) shooting clip in the first half.
The Lions (0-2) held a 51-36 edge in rebounding overall, with a 25-11 advantage on the offensive glass.
MACU will next open up action in the Sooner Athletic Conference with a matchup at the No. 3-ranked Oklahoma City Stars on Tuesday evening (Nov. 23) at 6 p.m.
