ASHEVILLE, N.C.  – No. 3 UNCG women's basketball comes back to defeat No. 7 Mercer in overtime on Friday, securing their first trip to the SoCon Championship tournament finals since 2006. The Spartans will faceoff against top-seeded Samford on Saturday at 12 p.m., with the winner earning an automatic bid to this year's NCAA Championship tournament. 

The Spartans took a 15-12 advantage into the first break, with forward Aja Boyd continuing her performance from the previous night with six points and three boards in the opening 10 minutes. UNCG would score just four buckets during the second quarter, but hold Mercer to 10 points, while outrebounding the side 14-4. 

Te'ja Twitty had five boards in the second quarter alone, finishing with six in the first half, along with a team-high 12 points. Taking a 32-25 lead into the halftime break, 12 of the Spartans' points came at the charity stripe during the first 20 minutes, while only five of the Bears' total came off of free throws. 

Boyd added another eight to her total, but Mercer's shooters would get hot during the third, knocking down 11 of their 17 attempts from the floor. The Bears went on an 11-2 run during the quarter, ultimately outscoring the Spartans 26-14 to take a 51-46 lead into the last 10 minutes.

Twitty completed her double-double before the start of the fourth, while Boyd scored 19 in the first 30 minutes. The latter added another five in the fourth as the Spartan defense held the Bears to four buckets in the final period of regulation. UNCG led by two with less than minute remaining, but a pair of made Mercer free throws sent the semifinal to overtime, tied at 63 apiece. 

The Spartans could hardly miss in the extra period, going 5-for-6 to take home a 75-73 win, thanks to a buzzer-beater from senior Nadine Soliman. The Spartans defeated Mercer for the third time this season, just the third time they've beaten the Bears all-time 

Things To Know
-- Aja Boyd finished with a career-high 28 points, while Twitty scored 22

-- The two sides combined for just a single three-pointer on the night, with the Spartans going without a three made for the first time in over two years

-- Twitty and Soliman both finished with double-doubles, the former scored 22 with a season-high 15 boards, while the latter recorded 13 and 13

Coming Up Next
The Spartans prep for a SoCon Championship final against No. 1 Samford, the lone conference team they are yet to beat in the 2019-20 season.

-- UNCG –