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EDINBURG – In her final home game, graduate student Alicia McCray scored a season-high 15 points with a career-high 15 rebounds to lead The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's basketball team past Utah Valley University (UVU) 71-64 in overtime on Saturday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
 
During her first double-double in a UTRGV (13-13, 3-8 WAC) uniform, McCray went 3-for-5 from the field, including 1-for-2 from behind the arc, and 8-for-9 from the line while recording four assists, two steals and one block. Ten of McCray's 15 rebounds were offensive, making up nearly half of UTRGV's season-high 21 offensive rebounds.
 
Junior Megan Johnson led all scorers with 25 points, marking her second-straight game of at least 22 points and her third of the season. Johnson is averaging 15.3 points over her last eight games.
 
Britta Spencer led UVU (10-16, 4-7 WAC) with 19 points. Mariah Seals scored 11 points with seven rebounds and six assists. Jordan Holland scored 11 points.
 
UVU scored the first six points of the game before McCray and junior Idil Türk hit three-pointers as part of an 11-2 run to put UTRGV up 11-8.
 
UTRGV led by as much as four in the first half, going up 16-12 on a three by junior Vela alum Daniela Azubell.
 
UVU tied the game at 18 on an Ally Bates three early in the second quarter, but a pair of McCray free throws gave UTRGV the lead, and UTRGV led by one possession for the remainder of the quarter.
 
Up three at the start of the third quarter, UTRGV hit four of its first seven shots to go on a 9-3 run and extend the lead to 35-26.
 
UTRGV still led by nine at 37-28 on a Johnson layup midway through the quarter before Holland made a layup to spark an 8-1 run to bring UVU within two.
 
McCray answered with a three-point play, but a Spencer three and a Gabrielle Leos jumper at the start of the fourth quarter tied the game at 41.
 
The game was separated by no more than one possession for the rest of regulation. UTRGV took a 58-56 lead on a Johnson layup with 2:18 left, but layups by Seals and Holland put UVU on top.
 
Junior Jameka Dowell made a jumper with 56 seconds remaining to force overtime.
 
UTRGV scored the first seven points of the extra session on a three-point play by freshman Amara Graham and a jumper and a layup by Johnson to take the lead for good.
 
UTRGV is back in action on Thursday at 7 p.m. at UMKC.

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