In arguably one of, if not, the most thrilling finish of the regular season thus far for the Lady Bears, they held off a talented Lady Indians squad in overtime, winning 68-61 at home, Thursday.

After the game Southwest head coach Brent Harris said that it was a tough challenge to overcome a good Itawamba team.

"Hats off to Itawamba and Coach (Robin) Porter, she did an excellent job, and her staff did an excellent job," he said. "That was a tough one."

The Lady Bears (19-6, 10-2 MACCC) got off to a bit of a slow start as the offense had trouble getting established. Meanwhile, on the other end of the floor, the Lady Indians scored the first five points of the game. Southwest broke through the scoreless streak a little less than four and a half minutes in when Kara Beth Addison connected on a shot from close-range. She followed that up with two more makes from close over the next few minutes helping the Lady Bears keep pace.

In the final 1:48 of the first quarter, Southwest put together a 7-0 run which culminated with a 3-pointer from Kalea Storm with :30 to go in the quarter, giving the Lady Bears their first lead of the game at 15-13. During the run, Morgan Sullivan made a key play, diving on a loose ball near the baseline giving Southwest possession once again.

The Lady Bears maintained the lead throughout the second quarter with Kennedee Shelton and Addison doing most of the heavy lifting on the offensive end. Southwest led 26-20 at the half.

In the third quarter, however, Itawamba began to slowly creep back. About 4:00 in, the Lady Indians grabbed the upper hand again before Southwest jumped back on top. The back-and-forth tussle ensued over the next few minutes of play. before Southwest got a make from Shelton with :02 left on the clock to pull within one at 41-40.

After the game, Shelton — who led the Lady Bears in scoring with 22 points — reiterated what she said Monday following the win over Hinds. "We are locked in and focused," she said. "We just have to play hard and stay focused."

Shelton was once again big for Southwest at about the midway point of the fourth quarter as the sophomore scored six-consecutive points on two field goals and two free throws before Addison capped-off the 8-0 run with a make of her own.

With under a minute to go, Addison made two free throws to give Southwest a 55-51 lead. But the Lady Indians rallied to score on two-consecutive possessions tying the game at 55 and forcing overtime.

In the extra period, Veronica Williams, who was held without a made 3-pointer for the night, came up big for Southwest. She connected on two big 3-pointers, the first giving the Lady Bears a 1-point advantage and the second breaking a 61-61 tie with 1:32 to go. "I just felt in a big moment that I had to hit (my shots)," said Williams who led the team in 3-pointers with 58 entering Thursday.

Williams' make not only gave the Lady Bears the lead, but it kick-started a 7-0 run that Southwest used to seal the win.

In addition to Shelton's big performance, Addison also shined with 18 points.

The Lady Bears will travel to Meridian on Monday at 5:30 p.m. in the final road game of the regular season.