FORT SMITH, Ark. – The No. 6 Texas A&M University-Commerce women's basketball team fought back from a 17-point second half deficit to take a lead in the final minute, but a late 3-pointer by UAFS handed A&M-Commerce an 85-84 loss on Saturday afternoon.
 
A&M-Commerce wraps up the regular season with a 26-2 overall record and 20-2 Lone Star Conference record. UAFS is now 14-14 overall and 11-11 in the LSC
 
TAMUC is the top seed in next week's LSC Championship and has advanced to the quarterfinal round. The Lions' first game of the postseason will be at 6 p.m. on Thursday at the Comerica Center in Frisco.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Freshman Dyani Robinson (Cypress - Langham Creek) scored a career-high 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting with three assists and three rebounds.
- Mykiel Burleson (Pflugerville), Maddison Glass (Missouri City - Hightower), and DesiRay Kernal (Newton, Kan.) each scored 11 points.
- The Lions shot 46.2 percent (30-of-65) from the field and 21-of-27 (77.8 percent) at the free throw line.
- A&M-Commerce trailed at halftime for only the second time this season and allowed the most points of any game this year.

COACH BURTON AFTER THE GAME
CLICK HERE to see coach Burton's postgame comments

HOW IT HAPPENED
A&M-Commerce started the game on a shooting tear, making nine of their first 10 field goal attempts. TAMUC scored the game's first six points on three-point plays by Jones and Bryant before UAFS scored three straight baskets to tie the game. The game was tied at 10-all with and 6:20 to play, when A&M-Commerce went on a 9-2 run. Robinson's layup at the 3:23 mark put TAMUC ahead 19-12 for the largest lead of the half. UAFS held A&M-Commerce scoreless for the final 2:11 of the quarter, and the hosts scored the final five points of the period to put the lead to 23-22 after 10 minutes.
 
That shooting slump carried into the second quarter for A&M-Commerce, as the visiting Lions were unable to make a field goal until the 5:22 mark. By then, UAFS had gotten out to its largest lead of the first half at 32-25. A&M-Commerce was able to go on a nine-point rally, and Robinson's three-pointer at the 2:45 mark put TAMUC back ahead 37-35. That lead was short-lived, as UAFS scored eight of the half's final 10 points, and the home side took a 43-39 lead into the dressing room at the break.
 
The early third quarter saw UAFS start on a blazing pace, as the home team scored 17 of the half's first 21 points, rushing out to a 60-43 lead with six minutes left in the period. A Kernal three-pointer snapped the drought for A&M-Commerce, as the blue and gold went on a 17-3 run, holding Fort Smith without a field goal for over five minutes. This allowed A&M-Commerce to narrow the deficit to as little as three points, and UAFS' third quarter lead was 66-62 with 10 minutes to play.
 
In the fourth quarter, the two teams went back and forth early, as UAFS was able to keep A&M-Commerce at arm's length. The home team led by seven points with 5:39 to play when A&M-Commerce went on a 10-point run, capped by a Robinson layup with 1:51 on the clock, giving the guests an 82-79 lead.
 
A three-point play by UAFS with 57.5 seconds to play tied the game, and Robinson's layup with 34.9 seconds left put A&M-Commerce ahead 84-82. TAMUC defended well in the next possession, but UAFS' Leiloni Culley hit a three-pointer from the top of the key with 6.6 seconds left. A Robinson layup attempt was blocked and a final inbounds play from underneath the basket was foiled, handing the home team the unlikely victory.